Digital Forensic Certification Practice Exam

Which process involves dumping macro streams in the analysis of suspicious MS Office documents?

1. Finding suspicious components

2. Identifying suspicious VBA keywords

3. Finding macro streams

4. Dumping macro streams

The correct answer is: Dumping macro streams

The process that specifically involves dumping macro streams during the analysis of suspicious MS Office documents is accurately reflected in the choice that focuses on this activity—dumping macro streams. This step is crucial in digital forensics as it allows investigators to extract and analyze the content of embedded macros, which can often contain malicious code or indicators of compromise. By dumping the macro streams, forensic analysts can thoroughly examine how the macros interact, what functions they execute, and how they may have been used to manipulate data or perform unauthorized actions. This analysis can reveal patterns or signatures associated with malware, making it essential to identify any potential threats lurking within a document. The other options, while relevant to the overall understanding of suspicious MS Office documents, do not specifically capture the act of extracting or dumping macro content for examination. Finding suspicious components and identifying suspicious VBA keywords are important tasks in the analysis process, but they do not specifically denote the technical action of dumping the streams where macro information is stored. Finding macro streams could also refer to the preliminary step of locating those elements within the document but does not encompass the actual process of extracting or analyzing that data.