What does "malware analysis" involve?

Malware analysis involves a systematic examination of malicious software to understand its behavior, functionality, and potential impact on systems and networks. By dissecting malware, analysts can identify how it operates, what vulnerabilities it exploits, and the damage it can cause. This analysis is crucial for developing effective countermeasures and improving cybersecurity defense strategies.

The process typically includes static analysis, where the malware's code is analyzed without executing it, and dynamic analysis, where the malware is executed in a controlled environment to observe its behavior. Understanding the malware's behavior helps cybersecurity professionals to not only mitigate immediate threats but also develop signatures for detection and improve overall system resilience against future attacks.

The other options, while related to cybersecurity, focus on different aspects. Creating software to combat malware involves the development of antivirus or other protective software rather than analyzing existing malware. Distributing software updates is important for patching vulnerabilities but does not entail analyzing malware. Removing malware from infected systems is a reactive measure that follows the understanding gained from malware analysis but does not encompass the analysis process itself.