Malware: Uncover The Hidden VAR Opportunities

By demonstrating that hidden malware can be a major business problem for its customers, this integrator is growing sales by 31% this year.

Sometimes, you have to dig a little deeper to grow sales. For instance, just because your customers aren't complaining about problems on their networks, it doesn't mean there isn't something wrong. The current generation of network attacks often operate in stealth mode. That type of malicious software code is called malware, and it is a threat to most types of technology with network and/or Internet access — cell phones, computers, PDAs, POS (point of sale) equipment, and wireless networks. According to the Shadowserver Foundation, a volunteer watchdog group of security professionals, "Malware constitutes any software written for malicious reasons that infiltrates a computer without authorization and performs some nefarious function." Malware can come in many varieties such as keyloggers, Trojans, worms, bots, root kits, and spyware — perhaps the biggest threat to identity theft and information leakage. Those variations of malware are the center point of the modern cybercrime landscape, and your customers may not even be aware of those threats. Thus, malware is a hidden sales opportunity for VARs, lurking in nearly every one of your customers' networks.