Cloud AV : Antivirus Software Apocalypse?

Talking about data security issues is one of the most urgent in the computer world. But with the new threats – malwares, viruses, Trojans, worms, spywares, etc – that keeps on attacking the data security, antivirus software has become more and more passive in their battle. Not to mention that this multi-thread software is consuming most of your computer memory upon start-up and while running. Needless to say, the hackers and virus-makers are controlling the game.

There is a need to update your installed antivirus suites on a daily basis to prevent data vulnerability. But once a kind of threat is not included in your antivirus database, a leak for infiltration could start some serious problems. It may take more than a week before your antivirus program can develop an antidote for such threat, giving enough time for virus-makers to create 2-3 strains of computer viruses.

Good thing that Cloud AV could save the day. It is a new kind of data security architecture that strain threats right before they get into your computer unit. Incoming files are already scrutinized on the server and not on the local PC. Plus, the N-Version Protection works like more than one antivirus engines running on your PC. The three major mechanisms of Cloud AV start with a Light-Weight Host Agent which transports incoming files to the network for analysis, then to a Network Service which is the analysis center, and finally to archival and forensics service which decides how to manage the analyzed files. This Cloud AV can only be installed on a host agent, thus, greatly cuts the cost and effort of installing antivirus software per computer unit.