Detecting Malicious Email Attachments via Shortcut File Attribute Analysis
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing email security systems fail to effectively detect malicious email attachments, especially those disguised as legitimate files, due to attackers' increasing sophistication in masking malicious intent with misleading icons and text descriptions.
Innovation Solution
A computer-implemented method and system that identifies shortcut files in emails, analyzes their attributes, and compares them with accompanying text to determine if the text accurately characterizes the file, thereby detecting malicious attachments by identifying mismatches in file types, locations, and command line arguments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Object-affected harmful factors
If attackers use misleading icons and text descriptions to disguise malicious attachments, then the欺骗性 (deception capability) of malicious attachments improves, but the detection accuracy of security systems deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nested doll by examining the shortcut file at multiple levels: first analyzing the shortcut file structure itself, then examining the target file it references, and finally comparing both with the email text description. This multi-layered analysis reveals mismatches between the displayed icon/text and the actual file content, detecting deception that single-level analysis would miss.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary analysis layer that compares three elements: the shortcut file attributes, the target file attributes, and the email text description. This intermediary comparison process acts as a mediator to identify inconsistencies and detect malicious attachments that have been disguised with misleading icons and text.
2Measurement precision
If email recipients manually inspect attachments to identify malicious files, then the detection accuracy improves, but the productivity deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service by enabling the email system to automatically perform the inspection function that would otherwise require human recipients. The system autonomously analyzes shortcut files, compares attributes, and detects mismatches without user intervention, maintaining high detection accuracy while preserving email processing efficiency.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the mechanical human inspection process with an automated computer-based analysis system. Instead of relying on recipients to manually examine attachments, the system automatically extracts and compares file attributes, substituting human effort with computational analysis that achieves both accuracy and efficiency.
3Measurement precision
If advanced analysis methods are used to detect disguised malicious files, then the detection accuracy improves, but the device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies segmentation by breaking down the complex analysis task into distinct modular components: extracting shortcut file attributes, extracting target file attributes, comparing attributes with email text, and generating detection results. This segmentation manages system complexity by organizing the analysis process into manageable, independent modules that can be executed systematically.
Data Source
AI summary
A computer-implemented method for detecting malicious email attachments may include (1) identifying a shortcut file received as an attachment to an email, wherein the shortcut file is configured to open a target file, (2) analyzing the shortcut file to identify at least one attribute of the shortcut file, wherein the attribute comprises information about the shortcut file useful for determining whether text accurately characterizes the shortcut file, (3) identifying accompanying text in the email that characterizes the attachment, and (4) determining that the attachment is malicious by comparing the attribute of the shortcut file with the accompanying text in the email that characterizes the attachment and, based on the comparison, determining that the accompanying text does not accurately characterize the shortcut file. Various other methods, systems, and computer-readable media are also disclosed.