{
  "timestamp": "2025-02-05T23:34:35.063090",
  "model": "deepseek/deepseek-r1-distill-llama-70b",
  "request": {
    "messages": [
      {
        "role": "system",
        "content": "You are a cybersecurity expert analyzing company website content and product documentation.\n            Focus on clear explanations of security features, compliance certifications, and practical user guidance."
      },
      {
        "role": "user",
        "content": "\n            Provide a comprehensive analysis of the following security-related content.\n            \n            Content to analyze:\n            Search Free Trial Get Demo French Ministry Survey Delivers Macro Backdoor March 1, 2017 Thinking of moving to France? Soyez tr\u00e8s prudent! That form youre busy filling out may be uploading and downloading files, exfiltrating data, doing reconnaisance of your network  or worse. A criminal malware group behind a sophisticated Excel macro backdoor, which has been targeting Middle Eastern financial institutions since 2015, appears to have diversified to new targets, with Cyren researchers recently discovering the technique being applied to a fake survey document purportedly sent by the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. Your average macro malware file  until you look closer While to all appearances a common macro malware document, static analysis of the weaponized file found  for starters  that it contains a message that only allows the file to run on newer versions of MS Office. Base64 encoded content is hidden behind the message, which is decoded later on. Once the macro is enabled, the malicious content will run in the background and a survey will appear. The image from the English-language survey suggests the target audience for this attack. The Macro Tr\u00e8s sophistiqu\u00e9 Taking a closer look at the macro reveals that it uses two functions doom3_Init is used to deploy the payload doom3_ShowHideSheets is used to show the hidden decoy survey. Doom3_Init will drop the payloads test3.vbs and test3.ps1 in the PUBLICLibraries folder. Take note the environment variable PUBLIC will only work on Windows Vista and newer versions. Test3.vbs will be put on the scheduled task named OfficeUpdate. Once the task is triggered, it will then execute test3.ps1, which is a PowerShell script. 1 st Stage Payload Peeking at the contents of test3.ps1 , it has a couple of variables that it uses as settings. It will create several more payloads and directories for its setup. All of which are created in PublicLibrariesRecordedTV directory. All the payloads were initially encoded using base64 and will be decoded upon creation. The Init function is quite straightforward it will create the directories, files and a scheduled task named GoogleUpdateTasksMachineUI. If it fails to create the task, it will force the deletion of the created directory. Before creating the files, it also has a function to modify the content of the 2 nd stage payloads. It tries to randomize the variables before encoding them using base64 and saving them into the files. And finally , it will also try to cover the 1 st stage payloads tracks. 2 nd stage payloads The 2 nd stage payloads consist of 3 files backup1.vbs  added as a scheduled task to act as autostart mechanism. Responsible for executing the 2 powershell scripts. DnE1.Ps1  used to downloadupload files and commands from C2 servers. It uses the User-Agent of the Bitsadmin tool. To summarize the main function, we renamed it to describe what it does. DnS1.Ps1  Uses DNS protocol to get information fromto the victims network. Once executed, it will try to get the botid using a DNS query. It checks that start of the data or IP returned by the DNS query starts 33.33. It gets the rest of the data, converts it and saves it to the batch file. Below is the snippet of the renamed function DNS_Query_Handler. It will try and execute this batch file and output it to a text file. This text file will be uploaded the same way the contents of the batch file were filled, through DNS queries. Related attacks Using the information from the analysis of the file, we came across research from Palo Alto Networks and FireEye reporting on related attack techniques targeting Middle Eastern financial institutions last year. It didnt take long for scammers to catch a ride on the Home-Depot-data-breach wave. Last week, CYREN caught and blocked emails claiming to be from American Express, containing the subject header American Express  Security concern on Data breach at Home Depot. The email takes an insidiously effective approach, reminding customers of the Home Depot breach and advising them to regularly check their online accounts for suspicious activity. Of course, the login link provided takes consumers to a phishing address. And, the From email address a legitimate American Express email address, is spoofed so the sender is further tricked into assuming that the email is legitimate. What makes this email particularly dangerous is the content is an almost word-for-word reproduction of a message on the real American Express website relating to the Home Depot breach. As always, CYREN reminds our readers to watch for clues that an email is fake. In this case, American Express will almost always include the card holders first and last name in the email, as well as a few digits of their account number. If this information is missing from the email, then it is very likely that it is fraudulent. Try it for Free Instant Data Classification Cyren URL Category Chacker Prev New Phishing Wave Targets Online Banking and Digital Payment Customers Krebs Exposed IoT Botnet Mastermind  Think Thats the End? Next Company Partners Resources Investor Relations Products Freeware Demo Solutions Contact Us Privacy Management Service by Data443\n            \n            Your analysis should cover:\n            1. Key security features and their benefits to users\n            2. Compliance certifications and regulatory adherence\n            3. User-focused security recommendations\n            4. Technical security implementation details\n            5. Data protection measures\n            6. Best practices for end users\n            "
      }
    ],
    "model": "deepseek/deepseek-r1-distill-llama-70b"
  },
  "response": {
    "content": "### Analysis of Security-Related Content\n\nThe analyzed content describes a sophisticated cyberattack involving a macro-based backdoor embedded in a fake survey document purportedly from the French Ministry of Foreign Affairs. This attack targets individuals, potentially including those in France or other countries, by leveraging social engineering and advanced malware techniques. Below is the analysis structured into the requested categories:\n\n---\n\n### 1. Key Security Features and Their Benefits to Users\nThe content highlights the importance of several security features that can help mitigate or detect such attacks:\n\n- **Macro Blocking/Disablement**: Macros in Office documents are a common attack vector. Disabling macros in Microsoft Office unless absolutely necessary can prevent such attacks. Users should only enable macros for trusted sources.\n- **Behavioral Analysis and Sandboxing**: Advanced detection mechanisms can analyze the behavior of scripts and macros to identify malicious actions, such as unauthorized file drops or scheduled task creations.\n- **DNS Monitoring**: Monitoring DNS traffic can detect anomalous queries, such as those used in this attack to exfiltrate data or communicate with command-and-control (C2) servers.\n- **Payload Decoding and Execution Prevention**: Security tools that decode Base64-encoded content and block malicious scripts can prevent the execution of the first-stage payload (e.g., test3.ps1).\n- **Scheduled Task Monitoring**: Regular audits of scheduled tasks can help identify malicious tasks like \"OfficeUpdate\" or \"GoogleUpdateTasksMachineUI.\"\n- **User-Agent Analysis**: Tools that monitor for unusual User-Agents, such as the BitsAdmin tool used in this attack, can detect malicious activity.\n\n**Benefits**: These features help users detect and block malicious activity before it causes harm, protecting sensitive data and preventing unauthorized access to systems.\n\n---\n\n### 2. Compliance Certifications and Regulatory Adherence\nThe content does not explicitly mention compliance certifications or regulatory adherence. However, based on the described attack, organizations should ensure compliance with regulations such as:\n\n- **GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation)**: Protecting user data and ensuring timely breach notification.\n- **NIST Framework**: Implementing guidelines for malware prevention, detection, and response.\n- **ISO 27001**: Establishing security controls for handling sensitive information and preventing unauthorized access.\n- **CIS Critical Security Controls**: Adhering to best practices for endpoint security, email security, and incident response.\n\nOrganizations must ensure that their security practices align with these standards to minimize the risk of such attacks.\n\n---\n\n### 3. User-Focused Security Recommendations\nTo protect against this type of attack, users should follow these guidelines:\n\n1. **Be Cautious with Emails and Attachments**:\n   - Avoid opening unsolicited emails or attachments, especially from unfamiliar sources.\n   - Verify the sender's identity and check for spelling/grammar mistakes in emails or documents.\n\n2. **Disable Macros by Default**:\n   - Do not enable macros in Microsoft Office unless necessary, and only for trusted sources.\n   - Ensure macros are disabled for documents from untrusted sources.\n\n3. **Use Antivirus Software**:\n   - Install and regularly update antivirus/anti-malware tools to detect and block malicious files and scripts.\n\n4. **Monitor Account Activity**:\n   - Regularly check bank and online accounts for unauthorized transactions or suspicious activity.\n   - Enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) wherever possible.\n\n5. **Educate Yourself**:\n   - Stay informed about common attack vectors, such as phishing emails and malicious document files.\n\n---\n\n### 4. Technical Security Implementation Details\nThe attack described in the content leverages several technical tactics that organizations should address:\n\n- **Malicious Macro Analysis**:\n  - Macros should be analyzed for unusual behavior, such as hidden sheets, Base64-encoded content, or attempts to drop files or create scheduled tasks.\n  - Tools like Cuckoo Sandbox or static analysis tools can help identify malicious macros.\n\n- **Payload Delivery and Execution**:\n  - The attack drops VBScript (test3.vbs) and PowerShell scripts (test3.ps1) in the `PUBLIC\\Libraries` folder, which is accessible on Windows Vista and newer versions.\n  - Monitor for unexpected script executions in these directories and restrict write permissions where possible.\n\n- **Scheduled Task Monitoring**:\n  - The attackers create scheduled tasks (e.g., \"OfficeUpdate\") to execute malicious scripts periodically. Regular audits and monitoring of scheduled tasks can help detect such activity.\n\n- **DNS Traffic Monitoring**:\n  - The second-stage payload uses DNS queries to exfiltrate data. Monitor DNS traffic for unusual patterns, such as large numbers of DNS queries or queries to unknown domains.\n\n- **Environment Variable Abuse**:\n  - The attackers exploit the `PUBLIC` environment variable to drop payloads. Restricting write access to such directories can mitigate this risk.\n\n---\n\n### 5. Data Protection Measures\nTo protect data against such attacks:\n\n1. **Data Encryption**:\n   - Encrypt sensitive data at rest and in transit to ensure it cannot be easily accessed by attackers.\n\n2. **Regular Backups**:\n   - Implement regular, secure backups of critical data to restore systems in case of an attack.\n\n3. **Network Segmentation**:\n   - Segment networks to limit lateral movement in case of a breach.\n\n4. **Log Monitoring and Analysis**:\n   - Regularly analyze logs from endpoints, networks, and DNS servers to detect anomalies.\n\n5. **Data Loss Prevention (DLP)**:\n   - Implement DLP solutions to monitor and control sensitive data transmissions.\n\n---\n\n### 6. Best Practices for End Users\nEnd users play a critical role in preventing such attacks. The following best practices are recommended:\n\n1. **Verify Sources**:\n   - Always verify the authenticity of emails, documents, and links before interacting with them.\n\n2. **Avoid Enabling Macros**:\n   - Never enable macros in documents from untrusted sources.\n\n3. **Keep Software Updated**:\n   - Ensure all software, including Microsoft Office and operating systems, is up to date with the latest security patches.\n\n4. **Use Strong Passwords**:\n   - Use unique, strong passwords for all accounts and enable multi-factor authentication (MFA) wherever possible.\n\n5. **Monitor for Suspicious Activity**:\n   - Regularly check bank accounts, email accounts, and other online services for unauthorized transactions or changes.\n\n6. **Report Suspicious Emails**:\n   - If an email appears fraudulent, report it to your organization's IT/security team and delete it without clicking on any links or opening attachments.\n\n---\n\n### Conclusion\nThe described attack underscores the importance of combining robust security measures with user education to mitigate risks. Organizations should focus on implementing advanced detection and prevention tools, adhering to compliance standards, and educating users about the dangers of suspicious emails and malicious document files.",
    "usage": {
      "prompt_tokens": 1174,
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      "total_tokens": 2885
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    "model": "deepseek/deepseek-r1-distill-llama-70b"
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}