![]() ![]() Recognizing this potential abuse of macros, during the heyday of Word 97 Microsoft introduced the first built-in security feature in Word that blocked Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) macros from running:įigure 9. Mitigating macro malwareĮmailing documents that contain macros is both a common occurrence in corporate environments and can serve as a technique to deliver malware when those macros are malicious. By using a Beacon, the Emotet operators can decrease the time to deploy their final payload – often ransomware. When Emotet’s operators first resurrected their botnet from the takedown efforts in late 2021, another campaign was discovered that uses Cobalt Strike Beacon, a popular pentesting tool. If extracted and executed, these files dropped and ran Emotet. In an earlier test campaign between April 4 th and April 19 th, the Emotet operators attracted victims to a ZIP archive, stored on OneDrive, containing Microsoft Excel Add-in (XLL) files, which are used to add custom functions to Excel. Most detections were in Japan (28%), Italy (16%), and Mexico (11%). Emotet’s operators use shortcut (LNK) files to deliver malware Taking note of the change, Emotet’s developers have shifted to experimenting with different techniques to replace their dependence on macros as the initial code stage of their malware delivery platform.īetween April 26 th and May 2 nd, 2022, ESET researchers picked up a test campaign run by Emotet operators where they replaced the typical Microsoft Word document with a shortcut (LNK) file as the malicious attachment.įigure 7. Microsoft’s move (on February 30 th 2022, so to speak) to throw out the “Enable Content” button came at a time for Emotet when, after recovering from last year’s takedown efforts, it had been churning out spam campaigns en masse in March and April 2022. Should the victim extract the macro-laden Word document from the ZIP archive, open it, and then click “Enable Content”, the malicious macros can run, ultimately downloading Emotet. Emotet’s operators use macro-enabled Word documents to deliver malware ![]() This is, of course, a very effective way of adding legitimacy to a malicious email:įigure 2. It started stealing email conversations found in compromised systems’ inboxes and reusing them in its spam campaigns. In 2018, Emotet resuscitated an effective technique – email thread hijacking – to increase the likelihood of a potential victim opening the email attachments. ![]() steal all email messages and attachments from compromised systems.steal email addresses and names from the compromised system’s Microsoft Outlook instance.abuse legitimate Nirsoft applications, such as MailPassView and WebBrowserView, that can recover passwords from popular email clients and web browsers, respectively.turn compromised systems into proxies within its command-and-control infrastructure.brute-force network share usernames and passwords.spread to nearby, insecure Wi-Fi networks by compromising connected users.spread further by assembling and delivering spam emails.Thus, once Emotet is running on a computer, it typically downloads and executes other strains of malware, such as Dridex, Gootkit, IcedId, Nymaim, Qbot, TrickBot, Ursnif, and Zbot.Įmotet has a modular program design, with a main module that is disseminated through vast spam campaigns that distribute emails containing malicious Microsoft Word documents. Click on Virus & threat protection as shownĥ.First sighted as a banking trojan in June 2014, Emotet has since changed drastically into a crime-as-a-service platform, selling access to compromised systems to other criminal groups. Please proceed to next step to enable Windows Defender, to keep your personal computer safe.Ĥ. No tick: No antivirus present and Windows Defender is not enabled in your computer. Enabling of Windows Defender is not necessary as your computer is protected by Windows Defender. Green tick: An antivirus program is present and running in your computer. On the Windows Security screen, check if any antivirus program has been installed and running in your computer. Scroll down and click Windows Security to open the application.ģ. Click the windows logo in the bottom left corner of the screen. The Start menu will pop up.Ģ. NOTE: Windows Defender cannot be enabled when another anti-virus is installed, e.g. You may learn more about Windows Defender from Microsoft website. Its' component includes anti-virus, anti-malware, firewall and more, to keep your personal computer safe. Microsoft Defender is a component of Microsoft Windows 10 to delivers comprehensive, built-in and ongoing security protections.
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