T1559.002: Dynamic Data Exchange
Adversaries may use Windows Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) to execute arbitrary commands. DDE is a client-server protocol for one-time and/or continuous inter-process communication (IPC) between applications. Once a link is established, applications can autonomously exchange transactions consisting of strings, warm data links (notifications when a data item changes), hot data links (duplications of changes to a data item), and requests for command execution.
Object Linking and Embedding (OLE), or the ability to link data between documents, was originally implemented through DDE. Despite being superseded by Component Object Model, DDE may be enabled in Windows 10 and most of Microsoft Office 2016 via Registry keys.[1][2][3]
Microsoft Office documents can be poisoned with DDE commands, directly or through embedded files, and used to deliver execution via Phishing campaigns or hosted Web content, avoiding the use of Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) macros.[4][5][6][7] Similarly, adversaries may infect payloads to execute applications and/or commands on a victim device by way of embedding DDE formulas within a CSV file intended to be opened through a Windows spreadsheet program.[8][9]
DDE could also be leveraged by an adversary operating on a compromised machine who does not have direct access to a Command and Scripting Interpreter. DDE execution can be invoked remotely via Remote Services such as Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM).[10]
Analyst context for executives and security teams
Dynamic Data Exchange is a legacy Windows inter-process communication feature that can turn Office documents or spreadsheet/CSV content into an execution path without relying on VBA macros. For leaders, the practical risk is that “macro controls” alone may not close document-based execution exposure, especially where older Office behaviors, registry settings, or business processes require opening untrusted documents.
Executive priority
Prioritize this where Windows endpoints and Microsoft Office document workflows are important to operations, especially teams exposed to phishing, hosted document content, or externally supplied CSV files. The key decision is whether the business still needs DDE-enabled behavior; if not, disabling or tightly configuring it provides clearer risk reduction than relying only on user training or signature-based detection. This technique also matters for audit and incident readiness because defenders need evidence that endpoint behavior prevention, application configuration, and document-handling controls address macro-less execution paths.
Technical view
This is a Windows execution sub-technique under Inter-Process Communication. ATT&CK notes DDE can execute arbitrary commands through Office documents, embedded files, CSV formulas opened in spreadsheet software, or remotely through services such as DCOM. MITRE does not provide official detection text for this object, but the related detection strategy DET0504 indicates detection should focus on abuse of DDE. SOC and IR teams should validate visibility into Office or spreadsheet processes initiating command interpreters, scripting engines, unusual child processes, or remote execution chains, and should compare findings against approved business uses of DDE/OLE-style document linking.
Likely telemetry
- Windows endpoint process creation and command-line events
- Parent-child process relationships involving Office or spreadsheet applications
- Document, embedded file, and CSV handling evidence from email, web, or endpoint controls
- Registry or software configuration state related to DDE/Office behavior
- Endpoint behavior-prevention alerts for suspicious process behavior
Detection direction
- Validate whether detections cover macro-less document execution, not only VBA macro behavior.
- Tune for suspicious Office or spreadsheet application child processes while accounting for legitimate automation, document linking, and business reporting workflows.
- Use DET0504 as the ATT&CK-linked detection strategy and test whether it produces useful evidence in the local Windows and Office configuration baseline.
- Correlate document delivery context, such as phishing or hosted web content, with endpoint execution telemetry.
- Review blind spots where command-line logging, process lineage, registry visibility, or Office document inspection is incomplete.
Mitigation priorities
- First determine whether DDE or legacy Office linking behavior is required for business workflows.
- If not required, use Disable or Remove Feature or Program and Software Configuration controls to reduce or disable the exposed functionality where supported.
- Apply Behavior Prevention on Endpoint to block suspicious process behavior associated with document-driven command execution.
- Use Application Isolation and Sandboxing for risky document and web-content handling paths to limit system impact.
- Document control decisions and exceptions so compliance, SOC, and IR teams can distinguish accepted business use from abnormal execution behavior.
Analyst notes and limits
The relationship set shows this technique has been used by multiple ATT&CK groups, a campaign, and Windows malware families, which supports treating it as a recurring tradecraft pattern rather than a one-off feature abuse. Those relationships should inform threat modeling and detection test cases, but they do not prove current activity in any specific environment.
MITRE provides no official detection procedure for this object, and the supplied data does not include specific event IDs, product logic, or guaranteed control outcomes. Local Windows version, Office version, registry configuration, document workflows, and telemetry quality determine actual exposure and detection coverage.
Dynamic Data Exchange
Adversaries may use Windows Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) to execute arbitrary commands. DDE is a client-server protocol for one-time and/or continuous inter-process communication (IPC) between applications. Once a link is established, applications can autonomously exchange transactions consisting of strings, warm data links (notifications when a data item changes), hot data links (duplications of changes to a data item), and requests for command execution.
Object Linking and Embedding (OLE), or the ability to link data between documents, was originally implemented through DDE. Despite being superseded by Component Object Model, DDE may be enabled in Windows 10 and most of Microsoft Office 2016 via Registry keys.[1][2][3]
Microsoft Office documents can be poisoned with DDE commands, directly or through embedded files, and used to deliver execution via Phishing campaigns or hosted Web content, avoiding the use of Visual Basic for Applications (VBA) macros.[4][5][6][7] Similarly, adversaries may infect payloads to execute applications and/or commands on a victim device by way of embedding DDE formulas within a CSV file intended to be opened through a Windows spreadsheet program.[8][9]
DDE could also be leveraged by an adversary operating on a compromised machine who does not have direct access to a Command and Scripting Interpreter. DDE execution can be invoked remotely via Remote Services such as Distributed Component Object Model (DCOM).[10]
How security teams should use this page
Treat this object as behavior context, not an attribution claim. Validate the related groups, software, data sources, and mitigations against official ATT&CK relationships and your own telemetry before making control-coverage decisions.
Related techniques
This mirrors the MITRE pattern of making group, software, campaign, and technique relationships scannable. Relationship notes come from mirrored ATT&CK relationship text when available.
| Domain | ID | Name | Relationship / procedure |
|---|---|---|---|
| Enterprise | T1559 | Inter-Process Communication | This object subtechnique of Inter-Process Communication. |
| Enterprise | T1173 | Dynamic Data Exchange | Dynamic Data Exchange revoked by this object. |
Groups, software, and campaigns
G0080: Cobalt Group
Cobalt Group is a financially motivated threat group that has primarily targeted financial institutions since at least 2016. The group has conducted intrusions to steal money via targeting ATM systems, card processing, payment systems and SWIFT systems. Cobalt Group has mainly targeted banks in Eastern Europe, Central Asia, and Southeast Asia. One of the alleged leaders was arrested in Spain in early 2018, but the group still appears to be active. The group has been known to target organizations in order to use their access to then compromise additional victims.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7] Reporting indicates there may be links between Cobalt Group and both the malware Carbanak and the group Carbanak.[8]
G0046: FIN7
FIN7 is a financially-motivated threat group that has been active since 2013. FIN7 has targeted the retail, restaurant, hospitality, software, consulting, financial services, medical equipment, cloud services, media, food and beverage, transportation, pharmaceutical, and utilities industries in the United States. A portion of FIN7 was operated out of a front company called Combi Security and often used point-of-sale malware for targeting efforts. Since 2020, FIN7 shifted operations to big game hunting (BGH), including use of REvil ransomware and their own Ransomware-as-a-Service (RaaS), Darkside. FIN7 may be linked to the Carbanak Group, but multiple threat groups have been observed using Carbanak, leading these groups to be tracked separately.[1][2][3][4][5][6][7]
G0069: MuddyWater
MuddyWater is a cyber espionage group assessed to be a subordinate element within Iran's Ministry of Intelligence and Security (MOIS).[1] Since at least 2017, MuddyWater has targeted a range of government and private organizations across sectors, including telecommunications, local government, finance, defense, and oil and natural gas organizations, in the Middle East (specifically the UAE and Saudi Arabia), Asia, Africa, Europe, and North America. MuddyWater has reused domains dating back to October 2025, and has a preference for NameCheap and Hosterdaddy Private Limited (AS136557). In late 2025 and early 2026, MuddyWater used commercial satellite internet (i.e., Starlink) for command and control (C2) communication. [2][3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]
G0121: Sidewinder
Sidewinder is a suspected Indian threat actor group that has been active since at least 2012. They have been observed targeting government, military, and business entities throughout Asia, primarily focusing on Pakistan, China, Nepal, and Afghanistan.[1][2][3]
G0007: APT28
APT28 is a threat group that has been attributed to Russia's General Staff Main Intelligence Directorate (GRU) 85th Main Special Service Center (GTsSS) military unit 26165.[1][2] This group has been active since at least 2004.[3][4][5][6][7][8][9][10][11][12][13]
APT28 reportedly compromised the Hillary Clinton campaign, the Democratic National Committee, and the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee in 2016 in an attempt to interfere with the U.S. presidential election.[5] In 2018, the US indicted five GRU Unit 26165 officers associated with APT28 for cyber operations (including close-access operations) conducted between 2014 and 2018 against the World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA), the US Anti-Doping Agency, a US nuclear facility, the Organization for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons (OPCW), the Spiez Swiss Chemicals Laboratory, and other organizations.[14] Some of these were conducted with the assistance of GRU Unit 74455, which is also referred to as Sandworm Team.
G0067: APT37
APT37 is a North Korean state-sponsored cyber espionage group that has been active since at least 2012. The group has targeted victims primarily in South Korea, but also in Japan, Vietnam, Russia, Nepal, China, India, Romania, Kuwait, and other parts of the Middle East. APT37 has also been linked to the following campaigns between 2016-2018: Operation Daybreak, Operation Erebus, Golden Time, Evil New Year, Are you Happy?, FreeMilk, North Korean Human Rights, and Evil New Year 2018.[1][2][3]
North Korean group definitions are known to have significant overlap, and some security researchers report all North Korean state-sponsored cyber activity under the name Lazarus Group instead of tracking clusters or subgroups.
G0084: Gallmaker
G0065: Leviathan
Leviathan is a Chinese state-sponsored cyber espionage group that has been attributed to the Ministry of State Security's (MSS) Hainan State Security Department and an affiliated front company.[1] Active since at least 2009, Leviathan has targeted the following sectors: academia, aerospace/aviation, biomedical, defense industrial base, government, healthcare, manufacturing, maritime, and transportation across the US, Canada, Australia, Europe, the Middle East, and Southeast Asia.[1][2][3][4]
G1002: BITTER
G0092: TA505
G0040: Patchwork
Patchwork is a cyber espionage group that was first observed in December 2015. While the group has not been definitively attributed, circumstantial evidence suggests the group may be a pro-Indian or Indian entity. Patchwork has been seen targeting industries related to diplomatic and government agencies. Much of the code used by this group was copied and pasted from online forums. Patchwork was also seen operating spearphishing campaigns targeting U.S. think tank groups in March and April of 2018.[1] [2][3][4]
S0458: Ramsay
S0391: HAWKBALL
S0148: RTM
S0476: Valak
S0428: PoetRAT
PoetRAT is a remote access trojan (RAT) that was first identified in April 2020. PoetRAT has been used in multiple campaigns against the private and public sectors in Azerbaijan, including ICS and SCADA systems in the energy sector. The STIBNITE activity group has been observed using the malware. PoetRAT derived its name from references in the code to poet William Shakespeare. [1][2][3]
S0223: POWERSTATS
POWERSTATS is a PowerShell-based first stage backdoor used by MuddyWater. [1]
S0387: KeyBoy
S0237: GravityRAT
GravityRAT is a remote access tool (RAT) and has been in ongoing development since 2016. The actor behind the tool remains unknown, but two usernames have been recovered that link to the author, which are "TheMartian" and "The Invincible." According to the National Computer Emergency Response Team (CERT) of India, the malware has been identified in attacks against organization and entities in India. [1]
C0013: Operation Sharpshooter
Operation Sharpshooter was a global cyber espionage campaign that targeted nuclear, defense, government, energy, and financial companies, with many located in Germany, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. Security researchers noted the campaign shared many similarities with previous Lazarus Group operations, including fake job recruitment lures and shared malware code.[1][2][3]
All related ATT&CK context
Mitigation direction
Object version and sync metadata
The fields below describe the current mirrored snapshot. When Glexia retains multiple ATT&CK source imports, you can open the table to compare the same object across releases (hashes and MITRE timestamps). For MITRE’s own release notes and roadmap, see ATT&CK resources — Updates .
Imported snapshots across ATT&CK releases (1)
| Release | Bundle imported | Object version | Modified | Status | Raw hash |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 19.1 | 1.4 | Current bundle | 24a4a7e8efdb… |
Mirrored ATT&CK source object
The raw object is retained through the mirrored ATT&CK source bundle and object hash. The raw endpoint returns the exact object from the mirrored bundle when available.
External references and citations
MITRE external references are preserved separately from Glexia analysis so citations remain traceable to their original source records.
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[1]
BleepingComputer DDE Disabled in Word Dec 2017
Cimpanu, C. (2017, December 15). Microsoft Disables DDE Feature in Word to Prevent Further Malware Attacks. Retrieved December 19, 2017.
Open source URL -
[2]
Microsoft ADV170021 Dec 2017
Microsoft. (2017, December 12). ADV170021 - Microsoft Office Defense in Depth Update. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
Open source URL -
[3]
Microsoft DDE Advisory Nov 2017
Microsoft. (2017, November 8). Microsoft Security Advisory 4053440 - Securely opening Microsoft Office documents that contain Dynamic Data Exchange (DDE) fields. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
Open source URL -
[4]
SensePost PS DDE May 2016
El-Sherei, S. (2016, May 20). PowerShell, C-Sharp and DDE The Power Within. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
Open source URL -
[5]
Kettle CSV DDE Aug 2014
Kettle, J. (2014, August 29). Comma Separated Vulnerabilities. Retrieved November 22, 2017.
Open source URL -
[6]
Enigma Reviving DDE Jan 2018
Nelson, M. (2018, January 29). Reviving DDE: Using OneNote and Excel for Code Execution. Retrieved February 3, 2018.
Open source URL -
[7]
SensePost MacroLess DDE Oct 2017
Stalmans, E., El-Sherei, S. (2017, October 9). Macro-less Code Exec in MSWord. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
Open source URL -
[8]
OWASP CSV Injection
Albinowax Timo Goosen. (n.d.). CSV Injection. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
Open source URL -
[9]
CSV Excel Macro Injection
Ishaq Mohammed . (2021, January 10). Everything about CSV Injection and CSV Excel Macro Injection. Retrieved February 7, 2022.
Open source URL -
[10]
Fireeye Hunting COM June 2019
Hamilton, C. (2019, June 4). Hunting COM Objects. Retrieved June 10, 2019.
Open source URL -
[11]
NVisio Labs DDE Detection Oct 2017
NVISO Labs. (2017, October 11). Detecting DDE in MS Office documents. Retrieved November 21, 2017.
Open source URL -
[12]
mitre-attack T1559.002Open source URL
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