Polymorphic and targeted attacks: The long tail
The phrase “long tail” has become a popular way to describe events that don’t fall within the conventional statistical distribution, but instead occur in ones or twos at the “tail end” of the distribution curve. That’s the case in retail, where personalized products represent a growing percentage of sales—and it’s increasingly true in malware too.
At Sophos, 75% of the malware files reported to us are only ever seen in one organization. This level of polymorphism is unprecedented. What’s more, attackers have begun to develop and use far more sophisticated approaches to polymorphism to hide their attacks from security vendors and IT organizations. This battle has serious implications for IT, so it’s important to understand what’s happening, how Sophos is responding, and what you can do to protect yourself.
< Back Next >