A security administrator notices a recent increase in workstations becoming compromised by malware. Often, the malware is delivered via drive-by downloads, from malware hosting websites, and is not…

Increasing antivirus update frequency improves signature coverage but does not address zero-day or novel malware variants that antivirus is already failing to detect, leaving the root problem unsolved.

A cloud-based content filter intercepts web requests before they reach the endpoint, blocking access to known malware-hosting and malicious websites entirely, which prevents the drive-by download from occurring in the first place. Because the block happens at the URL or domain level, it is effective even against new malware variants that antivirus signatures have not yet identified. Enabling the appropriate category - such as malware distribution or malicious sites - ensures targeted and comprehensive coverage of this specific threat vector.

A NIPS can inspect and block known malicious traffic patterns but is less effective against encrypted HTTPS traffic and novel exploits, making it inferior to blocking access to the malicious source site outright.

A web-based gateway antivirus server relies on the same signature-based detection that the existing antivirus is already failing at, so it is unlikely to close the detection gap for the malware samples being delivered.