{"id":158382,"date":"2017-08-28T08:33:00","date_gmt":"2017-08-28T13:33:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.ntegrait.com\/dangers-lurking-that-can-impact-your-business-today\/"},"modified":"2024-02-07T08:14:30","modified_gmt":"2024-02-07T08:14:30","slug":"dangers-lurking-that-can-impact-your-business-today","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/ntegrait.com\/dangers-lurking-that-can-impact-your-business-today\/","title":{"rendered":"Dangers Lurking That Can Impact Your Business Today"},"content":{"rendered":"

What are Malware Variants and Why Are They So Dangerous?\u00a0 \u00a0\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Malware variants pose new threats to your data security. Find out how they work and why they\u2019re on the rise.<\/p>\n

A variant is an improvement on old malware. <\/strong>It combines something old and something new. Variants are a growing threat to business security.<\/p>\n

\"Malware\"<\/p>\n

Take a successful piece of Malware like WannaCry<\/a>, which shut down government agencies and organizations around the world this year. The damage was caused by an old Windows vulnerability that had previously been fixed. However, inadequate company security practices left them open to an attack.<\/p>\n

When a piece of malware successfully targets a vulnerability, two significant things occur:<\/strong><\/p>\n

    \n
  1. Security experts race to pinpoint what vulnerabilities are being targeted and how they can be patched. <\/strong><\/li>\n
  2. Hackers around the world take note of the success and start investigating the malware for their own use.<\/strong><\/li>\n<\/ol>\n

    Because malware code is typically available from sources like the Dark Web, hackers can tweak it the original version so it will attack different types of data, protect itself more effectively, find new openings to exploit, and more. Each version that\u2019s created and unleashed is a \u201cvariant\u201d of the original attack.<\/p>\n

    Malware can be \u201cpatched\u201d the same way it\u2019s done with other forms of software\u2014Weaknesses are removed and old mistakes are corrected. Hackers update viruses and worms so they can overcome new security, and stay a step ahead of white-hat<\/a> programmers for as long as possible.<\/p>\n

    Malware doesn\u2019t die when security provides patches to stop it. Variants continue to live on for years into the future, and some of those variants will be even more dangerous than the original attack.<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Hacker Crowdsourcing<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The original creators of a malware attack release variants over time (most malware is a mishmash of techniques formed over years, so \u201coriginal creator\u201d doesn\u2019t mean much in this context). A malicious type of crowdsourcing<\/a> quickly emerges where hackers use their own approaches and knowledge to create a variant, and sell it as a new and improved version of the older malware. That\u2019s why we see a number of variants in the months following a famous hack\u2014Multiple hackers work to improve it and capitalize on the improvements.<\/p>\n

    Variants Help Old Malware Re-Emerge<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Another problem with variants is that they can lie dormant for some time and then spring back to life. This is an unpleasant surprise for security experts. Malware that they haven\u2019t seen in years suddenly comes back, ready to wreak havoc again. This time it\u2019s loaded with the latest tricks and updates. These variants allow for some very old malware to pose a new threat.<\/p>\n

    An example of this is Locky<\/a>, an infamous ransomware that attacked in 2016. The attack was put down, and subsequent variants didn\u2019t do much damage. However, in August 2017 security experts noticed a sudden surge\u00a0in new Locky attacks. The latest software variant was utilizing a new method of infection via clever phishing emails that encouraged the spread of Locky via a suspect download. \u00a0Locky then got to work locking files and demanding a stupendous $4,000 payment for their release. It\u2019s a good example of what a long-term headache malware can become.<\/p>\n

    There are a\u00a0<\/strong>Lot<\/strong><\/em>\u00a0of Variants<\/strong><\/p>\n

    Variants aren\u2019t like singular sequels \u2013 They are more like an ant queen giving birth to a new colony. Any small change is enough to create a new variant, and with hackers working around the world to enhance their attacks, the stream of variants is more or less unending.<\/p>\n

    According to AV-Test<\/a>, there were 143 million new malware samples, and 12 million new variants per month (or 400,000 new variants\u00a0every day<\/em>!). Many of these variants are relatively harmless, however, some are much more dangerous. Security experts must find out which these are.<\/p>\n

    Variants are Increasingly Popular<\/strong><\/p>\n

    The quantity of variants isn\u2019t slowing down anytime soon. In the past few years, the number of variants has sharply risen, along with Internet access and enterprising hackers\u2014<\/p>\n