How do you analyze malicious scripts for forensic evidence?

Analyzing malicious scripts for evidence during a forensic investigation involves several steps:

1. Identification: Identify and isolate the malicious script.

2. Documentation: Document all relevant information, including where the script was found, its behavior, and any associated artifacts.

3. Code Analysis: Analyze the code to understand its functionality and purpose. This may involve reverse engineering and examining obfuscated code.

4. Behavior Analysis: Determine the impact of the script on the system, including changes made, files accessed, network connections, and any other malicious activities.

5. Artifact Analysis: Look for any artifacts left by the script, such as logs, temporary files, registry entries, or configuration changes.

6. Network Traffic Analysis: Analyze network traffic to identify any communication initiated by the script.

7. Memory Analysis: If applicable, analyze memory dumps to identify any process injections or hooks related to the script.

8. Timeline Analysis: Create a timeline of events related to the malicious script to understand its activities and how it interacted with the system.

9. Attribution: Try to attribute the script to a specific threat actor or campaign by comparing it to known indicators of compromise (IOCs) and tactics, techniques, and procedures (TTPs).

10. Reporting: Document findings in a detailed report that can be used in legal proceedings or remediation efforts.

Each of these steps is crucial in analyzing malicious scripts for evidence during a forensic investigation.