Hackers Embed Weaponized Word File into a PDF to Evade Detection

To avoid detection, hackers employed a new method dubbed “MalDoc in PDF” to insert a malicious Word file into a PDF file.

Despite having magic numbers and a PDF-specific file format, a file created with MalDoc in PDF may be opened in Word.

If the file includes a configured macro, running it in Word causes VBS to launch and carry out malicious operations.

The attacks that JPCERT/CC reported used the “.doc” file extension. If Windows has the “.doc” extension associated with Word, the MalDoc in the PDF-created file will open as a Word document.

“The attacker adds an mht file created in Word with a macro attached after the PDF file object and saves it. The created file is recognized as a PDF file in the file signature, but it can also be opened in Word”, JPCERT/CC said in its blog.

Analysis of the Attack

Likely, PDF analysis tools like pdfid won’t be able to detect the malicious components in a file prepared using MalDoc. 

It should also be noted that this file exhibits unintended behaviors when accessed in Word; however, malicious behaviors cannot be verified when it is opened in PDF readers, etc. Since the file is recognized as a PDF file, current antivirus or sandbox tools may not detect it.

“This technique does not bypass the setting that disables auto-execution in Word macros,” the JPCERT/CC team noted.

Nevertheless, if you are doing automated malware analysis using specific tools, sandboxes, etc. You should be cautious about the detection findings, as the files are recognized as PDFs.

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