Day Zero is a Day Too Late: The Real Cost of Reactive Security Tools

Cyber threats have evolved at a pace that traditional security measures often struggle to match. Attackers no longer rely solely on easily detectable methods; instead, they leverage sophisticated tactics like zero-day exploits, fileless malware, and highly targeted phishing campaigns to infiltrate networks undetected. These advanced techniques allow threats to bypass traditional security layers, leaving organizations vulnerable to breaches that can escalate rapidly.

Many organizations have relied on software residing on the endpoint to detect when malicious code is trying to take hold. They rely on being able to detect an attack to quickly stop it. However, when attackers use advanced techniques to bypass detection, malicious code can take hold, preventing defenses from being triggered. By the time a threat is detected, the attacker has had time to steal data, encrypt files, or compromise systems.

The Limitations of Endpoint Security Tools

Endpoint Detection and Response (EDR) is one of these reactive tools. It has long been a cornerstone of cybersecurity, allowing organizations to monitor and respond to threats targeting their systems. However, despite its strengths, EDR operates within a reactive framework—identifying and addressing threats only after reaching the endpoint. This delay in IT remediation is ideal for threat actors, particularly those leveraging advanced techniques like zero-day exploits or fileless malware, which are adept at bypassing traditional detection mechanisms. By the time an alert is triggered, attackers may have already achieved their objectives, such as exfiltrating sensitive data or planting deeper footholds within the network.

The reactive nature of EDR often results in a race against time, one that organizations are not always equipped to win. Every moment between detection and response represents an opportunity for attackers to escalate their activities, whether by encrypting critical files, disabling security systems, or pivoting to other parts of the network. In addition to internal damage, these delays leave organizations grappling with the potential for costly compliance violations.

This is not to say that EDR can not be a valuable part of the cybersecurity arsenal. After all, a defense-in-depth approach is always better than one-off solutions. Instead, as a reactive security component, EDR requires augmenting technologies to help neutralize threats before they ever reach the endpoint.

The Price Tag of Reactive Security Solutions

The cost of relying on reactive security measures like EDR becomes painfully clear when the impact of delayed detection unfolds. Even a brief delay in responding to a threat can cascade into significant financial, operational, and reputational damage. For organizations, these moments of inaction can mean the difference between a contained incident and a full-scale crisis. For example, operational downtime caused by ransomware can halt critical processes, disrupt business continuity, and lead to significant revenue loss. In fact, according to SolarWinds, “The average cost of downtime across all industries has historically been about $5,600 per minute, but recent studies have shown this cost has grown to about $9,000 per minute.” How many minutes can your organization afford to be down due to a data breach? 

Beyond the immediate financial hit, there’s the potential for far-reaching damage—data breaches that expose sensitive information can trigger regulatory fines, legal liabilities, and erosion of customer trust.

In March 2021, CNA Financial, a major U.S. insurance company, experienced a significant ransomware attack. The breach began with a phishing email that allowed attackers to infiltrate CNA’s network, leading to the deployment of ransomware that encrypted over 15,000 devices, including those of employees working remotely via VPN. The attackers, identified as the Phoenix group, used a variant of the Hades ransomware, which is associated with the Russian cybercriminal organization Evil Corp.

Despite having advanced security measures in place, CNA could not prevent the rapid escalation of the attack. The company ultimately paid a $40 million ransom to regain control of its systems, highlighting the limitations of reactive security measures and the need for more proactive defenses. Even still, more and more companies are declining to pay ransoms as attackers have no incentive to delete data or stop at one ransomware request. 

The Need for Proactive Security

CNA Financial is just one of many breaches due to a lack of proactive defenses. Advanced technologies such as Data Detection and Response (DDR) and Content Disarm and Reconstruction (CDR) have shifted security from reactive to proactive. Instead of waiting for threats to reach endpoints, these tools operate in real time to neutralize potential risks before they can infiltrate systems. By treating every incoming file or connection as a potential threat and by masking incoming and shared data based on fine-grain privacy controls, organizations are able to adopt a zero-trust mindset and ensure that harmful content is disarmed or obfuscated before it ever touches their networks and confidential endpoints.

The Resurging Role of Zero Trust Cybersecurity

The zero-trust security model has become a fundamental pillar of proactive defense, even if the phrase itself has fallen into the “cybersecurity buzzword” category. However, zero trust continues to be the most efficient and effective way for organizations to prevent risks proactively, particularly when applied to processing all files, regardless of their origin. 

Unlike traditional approaches that grant implicit trust based on file source or user credentials, the zero-trust model assumes every file is potentially harmful or sensitive in nature. In the case of malware threats, zero trust operates under the principle of “never trust, always verify.” This means that each file crossing a boundary, such as coming from email, going to cloud storage, or being shared collaboratively, is analyzed and processed before it can interact with the network, neutralizing zero-day threats before they can cause harm or infiltrate deeper into the system.

How DDR and CDR Work Together

With the continued reliance on remote collaboration and third-party integrations (i.e., MS Teams, web upload portals, data lakes, etc.), organizations require a two-fold approach to prevent threats and keep private data private.

To do this, DDR and CDR make for a powerful combination under the zero-trust model. On one hand, DDR identifies sensitive data and privacy risks, applying automated masking measures to protect it from unauthorized access. Simultaneously, CDR goes a step further by deconstructing each file, stripping away any elements not explicitly verified as safe—such as malicious scripts, macros, or embedded links. Together, these technologies ensure that the content of files and the data they contain are secured before they ever reach endpoints.

This dual-layered approach offers comprehensive protection, neutralizing threats at their source while safeguarding sensitive information. By proactively disarming malicious content and preventing the spread of confidential data, DDR and CDR significantly reduce the attack surface for potential breaches. For organizations, this means fewer incidents requiring downstream responses, less reliance on reactive tools like EDR, and streamlined compliance with data protection regulations.

Prevention PLUS Reaction

Proactive measures don’t replace tools like Endpoint Detection and Response—they enhance them. While EDR remains essential for identifying and managing threats that slip through initial defenses, technologies like Votiro’s Zero Trust Data Detection and Response, which includes active data masking and proactive file sanitization (i.e., CDR), drastically reduce the volume of incidents requiring such intervention. This layered approach moves security postures from primarily reactive to a preventative model, minimizing the time and resources needed to respond to incidents and stay ahead of emerging threats.

To learn all about Votiro DDR, you can sign up for a one-on-one demo of the platform and see how we can help your organization remain compliant and free of zero days. You can also try the Votiro platform free for 30 days and see for yourself how easy we make data security.