Dwell time

Dwell time is the amount of time a malicious actor has on a system or network before being detected or their malicious intent is discovered. It is the length of time a malicious actor is able to remain un-detected or unnoticed in the cyberspace. It also includes the period of time during which the malicious actor is able to access confidential or sensitive data and leave with it in an undetected manner. The purpose of measuring dwell time is to identify the total length of time a hacker, malware, or other malicious actor has on a system, in order to better secure systems from future attack and breach attempts.

The longer the dwell time, the more difficult it is for IT personnel to detect and respond to the attack, as the malicious activity becomes increasingly sophisticated with the additional time. The dwell time period can also be affected by how quickly the security team responds to any alerts or notifications of suspicious activity on the system. If cyber security teams are more adept at responding to alerts and threats, it is likely that a malicious actor’s dwell time will be shorter.

Knowing an intruder’s dwell time is important for organizations to accurately evaluate the level of risk and potential damage associated with a data breach. It is also critical for webmasters to be aware of the potential impact of dwell time and its influence in cyber security defense. Having knowledge on the effectiveness of defense strategies, the order of data accessed, or any other malware file deployments that can be used in the future.

Knowing an intruder’s dwell time gives organizations the opportunity to review their security policies, system configurations, and relevant countermeasures to detect malicious activity and ensure the safety of sensitive information. By reducing the dwell time of a malicious attacker, organizations can be better prepared for cybersecurity incidents and reduce their overall risk.