Security in Computing

3.3 Countermeasures

So far we have described the techniques by which malware writers can transmit, conceal, and activate their evil products. If you have concluded that these hackers are clever, crafty, diligent, and devious, you are right. And they never seem to stop working. Antivirus software maker McAfee reports identifying 200 distinct, new pieces of malware per minute. At the start of 2012 their malware library contained slightly fewer than 100 million items and by the end of 2013 it had over 196 million [MCA14].

Faced with such a siege, users are hard pressed to protect themselves, and the security defense community in general is strained. However, all is not lost. The available countermeasures are not perfect, some are reactive—after ...