Cisco Talos published a technical note demonstrating how the VB6 disassembler vbdec can enable local, agent-driven reverse engineering by exposing its parsed data model through the Windows Running Object Table. Per the Talos blog and a Sandsprite technique note, when remote scripting is enabled vbdec registers its central CVBProject object and main form under monikers such as vbdec.vbp and vbdec.frmMain, allowing any local process to obtain a reference with Set o = GetObject("vbdec.vbp"). The disclosed recipe pairs this live object model with an AI agent support package and an operator briefing to let local agents query and automate analyses without modifying the disassembler core. Cisco Talos and Sandsprite frame the approach as lightweight to implement and useful for keeping parsed binaries local while enabling repeated, prompt-driven queries.
What happened
Cisco Talos published a technical writeup showing a method to pair local AI agents with traditional analysis tools by exposing tool internals through scripting interfaces, using the VB6 disassembler vbdec as an example, per the Cisco Talos Blog. Per a Sandsprite technique note that documents the same technique, vbdec can register its parsed project objects in the Windows Running Object Table (ROT) when remote scripting is enabled, exposing the core CVBProject object and the main form under monikers such as vbdec.vbp and vbdec.frmMain. The sources show that a script or process can retrieve a live reference with Set o = GetObject("vbdec.vbp"), granting programmatic access to forms, classes, modules, declared APIs, P-code bodies, controls, and strings.
Technical details
Per the Talos blog and the Sandsprite note, the recipe reduces to three components: the live model published in the ROT, a contract or manifest that documents the object shape for agents, and an AI agent support package that brokers queries against the live model. The writeups describe how this avoids reimplementing VB6 internal formats for each agent by letting the disassembler present a navigable object graph to external processes. Talos lists benefits such as exposing structured data rather than baking AI features into the GUI, enabling the application to act as both an interactive viewer and a persistent data server for multiple agent sessions.
Editorial analysis - technical context
Agentic automation that uses published object models leans on long-standing Windows integration mechanisms, notably COM and the ROT, which allow cross-process object references without modifying the target application binary. For practitioners, this lowers the engineering bar to build local, prompt-driven assistants: instead of parsing complex file formats repeatedly, an agent can interrogate a canonical in-memory representation. Observed patterns in similar integrations show this approach often shifts work into prompt design, state management, and robust object schemas, rather than into core parsing code.
Context and significance
For reverse engineers and incident responders, the documented technique matters because it preserves analyst-controlled data locally while enabling automated, repeatable queries. The approach is relevant where VB6 binaries require specialized parsing, since the parsed output becomes a re-usable data source across sessions. At the same time, making live object graphs accessible expands the attack surface for automation abuse, and defenders and tool authors will need to consider authentication, scripting controls, and operational security when enabling remote scripting.
What to watch
Observers should track whether other disassemblers or analysis tools adopt public object models or agent support packages, how vendors document object schemas and contracts, and whether community templates for safe local agents and operator briefings emerge. Researchers and practitioners will also watch for tooling that mediates access to live models, for example brokered local APIs that add authentication and auditing between agents and analysis applications.
Scoring Rationale #
A practical technique note from Cisco Talos on exposing a disassembler's object model via Windows COM/ROT for local AI agent automation. Relevant to security researchers and malware analysts working with VB6 binaries, but niche in scope - a conference-level tool tip rather than a significant tooling release or research advance.
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