Tax-Themed Phishing Campaign Delivers Malware Via Microsoft Management Console Files

Securonix warns that tax-themed phishing emails are attempting to deliver malware via Microsoft Management Console (MSC) files.

“The attack likely starts with either a phishing email link or attachment,” the researchers explain.

“While we were not able to obtain the original phishing email used in the attack, the lures and nomenclature used in the filenames and lure documents suggest that the campaign follows standard tax-themed phishing methods (Income-Tax-Deduction-and-Rebates202441712.pdf for example).

All of the documents examined are in English and one of them is a general tax document that appears to be prepared by the government of Pakistan.”

This particular attack is targeting users in Pakistan, but the researchers note that the use of .msc files in phishing attacks is starting to pick up traction more broadly.

“Threat actors can exploit these .msc files because of their ability to execute embedded scripts or commands under the guise of legitimate administrative tools,” the researchers explain. “In this scenario we observed the use of JavaScript, though the execution of VBScript is also supported. Therefore, any malicious code executed through the .msc file will execute under the context of mmc.exe. The robust flexibility of MMC files can be exploited maliciously since attackers can craft .msc files that, when opened, execute arbitrary code without explicit user consent.”

Securonix recommends that users “avoid downloading files or attachments from external sources, especially if the source was unsolicited.” The researchers add, “Malicious payloads from phishing emails can be delivered as direct attachments or links to external documents to download.  Common file types include zip, rar, iso, and pdf.”

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