Why Malware Attacks Should no Longer Be a Problem

“To combat cybercriminals and attacks that do not use malware,” said Uria, “companies must protect their IT equipment with an advanced information security solution that can deeply monitor systems in real-time and understand exactly what is true. Whether the actions performed are legitimate ...”

 

The point is that hackers are highly trained cybercriminals with access to resources capable of secretly hacking into an organization's system. Attacks that do not use malware, in which cybercriminals gain access to critical objects on corporate networks without using malware, are becoming especially popular.

 

With this in mind, should malware attacks be considered a problem or really a major security issue for today's enterprises, especially when solutions exist to prevent them?

 

In this blog, we take a look at the current state of malware and explain how businesses of all sizes can best deal with it and the latest non-malware attacks.

 

New Malware Is Created Daily, but Can Be Combated With Existing Security 

AV-Test Statistics, a leading independent testing organization for IT security solutions shows that between May and August 2018, there were approximately 11 million new malware samples each month, and by the end of the year, the total will reach around 815 million unique malware samples. (Twice more than in 2014).

 

This massive increase in the number of malicious programs may be due to the fact that information security systems have become more advanced, and cybercriminals are looking for new ways to compromise systems.

 

However, most enterprises have some kind of threat detection or event management solutions that automate the logging of malware attacks. In some cases, these solutions can apply corrective actions (such as quarantine or deletion) without the involvement of the analyst. In addition, as these solutions use machine learning technologies, they become more efficient and accurate over time.

 

Finally, when new malware comes out, antivirus programs update their signatures within 24 hours or even faster. According to CSO, which greatly reduces the chances of success for malware.

 

Malware Attacks Have Become Much More Sophisticated, But So Are Information Security Systems

Along with the use of concealment techniques and sabotage tactics (such as randomly creating and deleting files to avoid detection by cybersecurity solutions), the latest forms of malware are equipped with a "kill switch" - a function that essentially removes any records of its existence. ...

 

The Green Dispenser allowed a hacker to "drain" cash from an ATM if it was infected with malware. Once the ATM was emptied, the malware removed itself using a "deep removal" process, leaving virtually no trace of how the ATM was robbed.

On the other hand, The flame was discovered in 2012 and had several libraries, databases, encryption layers, and various plugins that could be changed to provide differently functionality to hackers. At the time, security experts referred to Flame as “hardest malware ever found “By virtue of its nature of functioning and capabilities.

 

Of course, while both of these programs demonstrate how powerful malware attacks can be, today's cybersecurity systems can monitor threats in real-time and continuously. These days, such attacks are only successful when businesses neglect regular software updates, security policies, threat notifications, and use pirated and/or incorrect software.

 

Despite The Daily Creation of New Malware, the Share Of Cyber-Attacks Using Malware Is Declining

According to our own research report, 62% of security breaches were caused by hackers. Among these violations, 51% were the result of malware. In the rest of the cases, cybercriminals used other tools against which most enterprises are not protected - in essence, these were "attacks that do not use malware."

 

Businesses are attacked in ways that they are not prepared or protected against, and the traditional approach to information security in the form of traditional total security software and firewalls just to protect against attacks using malware is no longer effective.

 

Real-Time Threat Detection and Threat Hunting Systems Can Reduce the Risk of Malware and Non-Malware Attacks

To defend against modern cyber and non-malware attacks, enterprises need an enterprise-grade an end-to-end solution with real-time threat prevention, detection, response and recovery and deep forensic analytics to significantly reduce malware risk...

 

Protegent360 Security, with an information TotalSecurity Software Protegent360, noticed a noticeable decrease in the number of incidents resulting from attacks using malware. The solution is a cloud-based endpoint security service that bridges the security gap for many enterprises. It includes file, web and email protection, client firewall, web content filtering, device control, and Exchange protection.

 

In addition, the total security analyzes and classifies all applications running on end devices (mobile devices, laptops, and other connected devices) and blocks those that are not allowed. Built-in automated forensic analysis and managed threat hunting services can dramatically increase protection.

 

Any potential threats are flagged in real-time using machine learning techniques, allowing analysts to respond to them and fix problems before these threats can cause any damage. As soon as malware is detected on the network, detailed information is compiled about the location of the malware, its type and devices affected by it, as well as its entire life cycle with information about all actions are taken (who, what, where, when, where, etc. .).

 

Conclusion

There are a number of enterprise-grade solutions available that can respond to malware attacks. But these days, for enterprises, the issue is not protection against malware, but protection against other forms of cyber-attacks. Non-malware attacks are on the rise, and businesses need to be able to defend not only their network perimeters, but also the endpoints beyond them on a daily basis.