ATT&CK · T1036.006 · sub-technique
Space after Filename
Tactics: stealth
About
Adversaries can hide a program's true filetype by changing the extension of a file. With certain file types (specifically this does not work with .app extensions), appending a space to the end of a filename will change how the file is processed by the operating system. For example, if there is a Mach-O executable file called <code>evil.bin</code>, when it is double clicked by a user, it will launch Terminal.app and execute. If this file is renamed to <code>evil.txt</code>, then when double clicked by a user, it will launch with the default text editing application (not executing the binary). However, if the file is renamed to <code>evil.txt </code> (note the space at the end), then when double clicked by a user, the true file type is determined by the OS and handled appropriately and the binary will be executed. Adversaries can use this feature to trick users into double clicking benign-looking files of any format and ultimately executing something malicious.
Used by actors
1 known groups
Software
1 malware/tools implement this
Corpus indicators tagged with this technique
0 indicators in the corpus carry T1036.006.
No corpus indicators are tagged with this technique yet.