Evolution of Anti-virus

After all the stories about the end of anti-virus technologies, I have been on the lookout for hints of next generation features. I stumbled upon this article:

Panda's idea for the near future is adding a new layer of security that it calls collective intelligence. He calls it the "web 2.0 version of security": instead of keeping each user's computer separate, it's scanned from the "cloud". This approach, he says, allows much bigger signature files and can detect targeted attacks because all computers are visible in real time.

But even this approach won't last forever. Salvatore Stolfo, a professor of computer science at Columbia University, says the attackers "have the upper hand. They have all the time in the world, and they have great motivation to spend their time and energy to avoid detection."

Antivirus has a future, he says, but it may be in name only. "Basic implementation and strategy will change." Like the fraud detection in use by banks and credit card companies, "eventually, systems implanted in machines will learn your own personal behaviour and protect by detecting abnormalities". One has to hope so. Otherwise, the future looks bleak. (Source: Guardian)

If you know of other technology, leave a comment.