The recent rise in hybrid workforces and digital transformation has generated a massive wave of content and electronic information. Shared through apps, emails, and websites. This expansion of a company’s attack surface easily outstrips their security team’s ability to plug the gaps with already strained resources. In the wake of struggling security teams, a new adaptation of powerful cyber technology has emerged as a potential solution. Content Disarm & Reconstruction (CDR) is a security technology that removes potentially malicious code from files. This advanced threat technology is increasingly being used by organizations as part of their zero-trust security strategy.

Not all CDR is equal

The first thing to note, is that not all CDR technologies are equal. Ensuring that you find the right CDR solution for your organization is key to the success of your cyber resilience. Many CDR technologies still rely heavily on detection-based technologies, leaving them vulnerable to zero-day attacks and unknown exploits. Additionally, there are CDR solutions that compress or flatten documents into images to ensure they are free from malware. However, this can severely impact the usability of the file. Which is why finding the right CDR solution that best suits the needs of your organization is crucial.

Before integrating a Content Disarm & Reconstruction (CDR) solution into your security environment.

Here are 6 questions that you should ask, when selecting your CDR vendor:

1. Does the CDR vendor support your required file types?

From Microsoft Office files, PDF’s and images to machine-to-machine protocols such as JSON and XML. Your organization will utilise a plethora of different file types on a daily basis. It is vital that when it comes to file types that your selected vendor supports your business needs and required file types.

See the CDR Datasheet for a full list of file types (opens a new window)

2.  How will the solution impact user experience?

As organizations search for new and more effective solutions to the problem of concealed malware, they risk negatively affecting user experience. In many cases, the intentions of various technologies are good, but the end result is that business processes become slower, resulting in increasingly frustrated users. This is why many organizations are now choosing to predominately use CDR technologies for the everyday documents in conjunction with their sandboxing solution, used for more complex file types. Integration and potential impacts will differ depending on the vector you are protecting i.e, email, file transfers, applications and workflows and more.

3.  How will the CDR process impact the usability of files?

Attempting to render files safe by “flattening” them - converting from the original revisable format into a fixed non-revisable image - leaves your users with documents that can’t be easily shared, edited or updated. When selecting your vendor, you need to take into account your business needs, and whether it is important to you that you are able to edit the documents you receive from outside sources.

4.  How long will the process take?

Utilizing technologies such as sandboxing for incoming files can understandably add latency. If you’re looking for a seamless and unnoticeable solution that won’t cause any delays It is important to confirm that your CDR vendor does not utilise sandboxing during the process.

5. Does the CDR solution require scanning, or any detection-based technology as a part of the content transformation process?

One of the biggest benefits of using a CDR solution is safeguarding users against known, and unknown threats, and zero-day attacks. This benefit is provided by using a prevention-based approach over detection. Meaning there is no reliance on needing to have seen a threat before to stop it. Solutions that continue to rely on detection leave your organization vulnerable to attacks, constantly playing catch up with attackers.

6. How does the transformation process work for your organization?

Ensuring that the CDR solution of your choosing suits your business needs is the most crucial part of the selection process. Unlike other CDR solutions on the market, Everfox’s unique Content Disarm & Reconstruction (CDR) technology is different.

Taking a true zero trust approach, it assumes that all data is potentially malicious. Everfox CDR works by extracting only the valid business information from files (either discarding or storing the originals). Verifying the extracted information is well-structured. Then building new, fully functional files to carry the information to its destination in near real time. Meaning that none of the original data will enter your organization or reach the endpoint. 

Operating at scale, Everfox Content Disarm & Reconstruction (CDR) delivers malware-free data, documents and images and requires no endpoint agent software. All whilst not impacting user experience. Trusted by many of the world’s most targeted military, government, regulated industries, and commercial organisations to provide protection against even the most sophisticated cyber threats. Evolve your security today, with Everfox Content Disarm & Reconstruction Solutions.