Enterprise Malware Analysis Efforts are Lacking
Enterprises that realized their cybersecurity defenses will never be 100% effective against malware attacks have increasingly turned to threat hunting and malware analysis as part of their defense-in-depth strategy.
According to a just-released survey by TK OPSWAT, 48% of organizations said they have a dedicated malware analysis capability, while 58% of those surveyed claimed they have intermediate malware analysis competencies, which include such functions as threat sandboxing.
The reason less than half of organizations have dedicated malware analysis capabilities is that this work remains a highly manual process. The survey found 93% of respondents were challenged by malware analysis; these challenges stem from manual processes and a lack of automation, tool integration and tool accuracy.
In addition to difficulty with toolsets, organizations are also challenged when it comes to staffing skilled malware analysts. The survey found 94% of respondents can’t find, train or retain the experienced talent they want and need. “Even worse, struggles with burnout point toward a greater trend of employees leaving the workforce—the cybersecurity skills gap has never seemed more apparent,” the report said.
These realities are sending respondents to managed security services providers, with 66% saying they are outsourcing malware analysis. Still, enterprises are trying to increase their in-house talent, with 74% stating that they are training existing employees to perform this analysis.
When it comes to toolset shortcomings, 58% cited lack of automation; 56% lack of integration. “Nearly three-quarters (72%) of organizations with malware analysis capabilities are using three or more different types of malware analysis tools; 86% are using anti-malware tools, 58% are using forensic tools and 53% are using dynamic analysis or sandbox tools,” the report stated.
Further, 66% of respondents said that their incident response team is understaffed and 70% said the same of their malware analysis team. “More than half of these organizations (53%) hire new employees to acquire talent for malware analysis, but even more (73%) train their existing talent; however, both of these approaches have their own challenges,” the report stated.
Of those respondents that do have the means for in-house malware analysis, 89% said that they struggled with IT staffing during the past 12 months. Fifty-six percent are also experiencing worker burnout and 38% of these organizations are concerned with increasing cybersecurity salaries or a lack of career growth plans that are behind staff choosing to leave.
The survey, conducted by Dimensional Research, was conducted in December 2021 and is based on the responses of 309 qualified participants with decision-making responsibility at companies with 500 or more employees.
