Malware Analysis Strives To Outpace Enterprise Digitalization

An increase in enterprise phishing threats and malware delivery has boosted demand for malware analysis.

Malware analysis is the process by which the purpose and functionality of malware samples are analyzed and determined. The information gathered from the malware analysis provides insights into developing an effective detection technique for the malicious code. In addition, it is an essential element for developing the efficient removal tools that can ultimately eliminate malware from an infected system.

Mobile Devices Change The Malware Dynamics

The penetration of mobile devices is witnessing rapid growth due to increase in acceptance of BYOD among organizations. The variety of applications, services, and functions available on mobile devices leads to large amounts of data being transferred and stored on devices. Data stored on mobile devices contains confidential information, such as usernames, credit card numbers and passwords.

This growth in dependency on mobile devices is inspiring organizations to implement effective malware analysis solutions, such as identity access management (IAM), asset management, unified threat management (UTM), and monitoring and analytics. Lucrative opportunities exist for attackers and developers of malware analysis tools in the near-term.

See Related: Email Phishing Overshadows Risk Of Mobile Malware

Breakdown Of The Malware Analysis Market

A recent report from Allied Market Research forecasts the market for malware analysis tools to exceed $24 billion by 2026. Malware analysis tools are available as software solutions and services. Organizations have the option to deploy malware analysis either on-premise or in the cloud. All industry sectors are susceptible to malware though analysis tools may be customized to meet regulatory compliance and reporting requirements.

Malware analysis solutions dominated 75 percent of the market in 2018. Solutions are seen less expensive and quicker to deploy than service offerings. The digital nature of business operations suggests that malware analysis services will contribute the most to the market’s growth in the future. Services consist of both managed services and professional services.

Cloud-based approaches have held the largest share of malware analysis deployments historically. Time-to-market has played a large role in cloud popularity as has the customizable features of cloud solutions. The on-premise segment is expected to contribute the most growth in malware analysis due to an organization’s ability to integrate with existing security controls.

The adoption of malware analysis technology among banks is a leading contributor to the success already observed in the BFSI industry sector. Banks utilize the technology to focus on securing data from various cyber-attacks and to protect customers’ data from various fraudulent activities.

Public sector organizations also show promise for malware analysis adoption due to increased regulation and adoption of cyber security standards and frameworks where malware detection and removal are prioritized.

See Related: Malware Analysis Tools Diversify To Address Scale Of New Cyber-Attacks

Future Enterprise Endpoints Pose New Risk

While current systems and device endpoint strategies are understood for malware analysis and removal, the growth in new endpoint types, such as IoT, leave many with questions about exposure to future risk.

Security is essential in mobile communications and security issues are projected to become increasingly important and widespread in many devices. The various challenges in designing security solutions include power, price, performance and consistency. With varying security requirements of device manufacturers, a standard security design remains a challenge for IoT vendors. This supply chain complexity hinders the ability for enterprise adoption of secure IoT solutions. Risk in the development of consistent, secure endpoints creates enterprise risk for malware to be deployed without adequate opportunity to defend and manage uniformly across all endpoints.

See Related: Critical Communications For Enterprise Cyber Security Incident Response