OPSWAT publishes 2023 Threat Intelligence Survey results, highlights need for detection capabilities

Critical infrastructure protection (CIP) cybersecurity solutions firm OPSWAT published Wednesday results of its Threat Intelligence Survey, highlighting urgent need for enhanced detection capabilities to combat evolving malware threats. Additionally, the findings reveal pain points, maturity levels, and strategies adopted by organizations to manage the current threat landscape and how to prepare for future challenges.

OPSWAT disclosed at Black Hat 2023 that hackers leverage malware as an initial foothold to infiltrate targeted infrastructures and move laterally to gain long-term access, cause damage, or exfiltrate data and trade secrets. “To combat these threats effectively, organizations rely on actionable threat intelligence gathered through sandboxes and advanced malware analysis technologies and processes. This proactive approach enables organizations to fortify their infrastructure defenses, enhance incident response capabilities, and tailor security strategies based on specific threats they are likely to encounter.” 

The comprehensive survey included insights from over 300 IT professionals responsible for malware detection, analysis, and response within their organizations, and provides valuable and surprising insights into the evolving threat intelligence landscape as well as the challenges IT professionals face today. 

“Threat intelligence plays a crucial role in safeguarding critical assets,” Jan Miller, CTO of Threat Analysis at OPSWAT, said in a media statement. “Understanding the evolving threat landscape empowers organizations to stay one step ahead of malicious actors, and in this rapidly changing cybersecurity landscape, it becomes the critical strategic advantage.”

The research revealed that threat intelligence is a work in progress. “68% organizations recognize the need for additional investments in tools and processes to enhance their threat intelligence capabilities. 22% have fully matured threat intelligence programs in place, with most indicating that they are only in the early stages or need to make additional investments in tools and processes.”

While only 11 percent of respondents currently use AI for threat detection, 56 percent of security professionals indicated they are optimistic about the use of it in the future, and 27 percent are skeptical, the OPSWAT research disclosed.

The survey reveals that organizations face common challenges, including 68 percent detecting both known and unknown malware; 67 percent grappling with inadequate signature-based solutions; and 54 percent dealing with fragmented tools. Additionally, approximately half of all participants noted that phishing URLs and email were among the top concerns for file type and delivery methods – emphasizing the importance of advanced security measures such as Deep Content Disarm and Reconstruction (CDR), sandboxing, and link reputation checks.

Earlier this week, OPSWAT announced significant international growth and corporate milestones for the first half of 2023, laying the groundwork for an ‘exceptional year.’ Notable achievements are marked by partnerships, new offices opening, industry events, and revenue growth. With the company’s global expansion efforts and continuous dedication to CIP solutions, OPSWAT is ‘well-positioned’ to enhance the enterprise IT and industrial operational technology (OT) cybersecurity landscape globally.

Industrial Cyber News Desk

Industrial Cyber News Desk