| In the past couple of years there has been a remarkable increase in the number of malicious software that is released onto unsuspecting user's computer's. Malware has become the most significant external threat to most computer systems; it can lead to widespread damage and disruption that usually needs extensive recovery efforts.Malicious users have recently started concentrating their efforts on Microsoft office documents,The Microsoft Office suite has become one of the infection vectors of choice for malicious users. There has been an increase in targeted attacks using malicious attachments. Malicious users employ different propagation methods to infiltrate and embed malicious software in office documents, delivering damaging payloads onto the user's system. This has led to an increasing need to use multi-layered protection strategy that includes anti-virus software, firewalls, Intrusion Detection Systems to Intrusion Prevention Systems in order to circumvent these attacks.In this paper a brief history of malware, different types of malware, countermeasures and forensic analysis tools to circumvent malware attacks that can be utilized to specifically scan office documents for malicious activity are discussed. Finally the malware threat landscape in office files is fully analysed by looking at current security reports from major security companies and using these findings to statistically paint a picture of the true extent of malicious software on Microsoft Office documents. |
