What makes macro attacks particularly dangerous?
Posted: Thu Jan 30, 2025 8:51 am
Macro attacks are a nuisance for security teams, as they have certain properties that make them difficult to track and difficult to prevent from spreading.
Easy to spread. Macros work on a variety of operating systems. When they land on a machine, they spread in a similar way to computer viruses and Internet worms . Macros can contain commands to modify other files and even file templates. This makes any file created on the infected machine a threat. For example, macros can also establish network connections to spread uk rcs data malicious files via email.
It can be fileless. A malefactor can write macros so that no trace of their presence remains on the computer's hard drive or any other storage device. That makes macro attacks a real example of a fileless attack in which the code exists only in RAM, not on the victim machine's drive (as a file or in any other form).
Easy to obfuscate. There are many algorithms for obfuscating macro code. Obfuscation is not coding, it is a very simple process, but it is enough to make the text unreadable for a human analyzer or even turn it into a puzzle before they can tell if the macro used is malicious.
Easy to spread. Macros work on a variety of operating systems. When they land on a machine, they spread in a similar way to computer viruses and Internet worms . Macros can contain commands to modify other files and even file templates. This makes any file created on the infected machine a threat. For example, macros can also establish network connections to spread uk rcs data malicious files via email.
It can be fileless. A malefactor can write macros so that no trace of their presence remains on the computer's hard drive or any other storage device. That makes macro attacks a real example of a fileless attack in which the code exists only in RAM, not on the victim machine's drive (as a file or in any other form).
Easy to obfuscate. There are many algorithms for obfuscating macro code. Obfuscation is not coding, it is a very simple process, but it is enough to make the text unreadable for a human analyzer or even turn it into a puzzle before they can tell if the macro used is malicious.