In today’s cybersecurity landscape, ransomware and malware attacks continue to grow in sophistication and frequency. For businesses of all sizes, having a reliable backup strategy is no longer enough — backups must also be secure, clean, and free of hidden threats.
NAKIVO Backup & Replication addresses this need with its powerful Malware Scan feature, designed to detect malicious content before it reaches your backup repository or production environment.
In this article, we explore how NAKIVO’s malware scanning works, why it matters, and how it can help strengthen your overall data protection strategy.
Why Malware Scanning Matters in Backup Environments
Modern ransomware doesn’t just encrypt data. It often lies dormant, spreads silently, and infects recovery points so that even your backups become unsafe. When it’s time to recover, organizations sometimes discover:
- Backup files contain infected payloads
- Recovery triggers reinfection
- Multiple restore points are compromised
- Downtime and recovery costs multiply
This makes proactive prevention essential. NAKIVO’s Malware Scan feature helps catch malicious content early and ensures your backups remain trustworthy.
What Is NAKIVO’s Malware Scan Feature?
The Malware Scan feature in NAKIVO Backup & Replication analyses backup data for signs of malware, ransomware, or suspicious patterns.
It provides an additional layer of security to help organizations prevent threats before they spread.
NAKIVO provides compatibility with multiple antivirus solutions across Windows and Linux environments, such as Microsoft Windows Defender, ESET NOD32 Smart Security, Kaspersky Internet Security, Sophos Intercept X, Sophos Protection, and open source ClamAV.
Key capabilities include:
1. Automatic Scanning during recovery
NAKIVO scans backup data during recovery, allowing malware-infected files to be detected before the restore process proceeds.
Upon detection of malware, administrators have multiple response options: immediately halt the recovery task, redirect the affected VM to a quarantined network segment for further investigation, or enforce additional protections like encryption and immutability.
2. Detection of Known Malware Signatures
By leveraging signature-based detection engines, the scan identifies:
- Ransomware traces
- Malicious code
- Known exploit patterns
- Suspicious file modifications
This helps ensure malicious content doesn’t remain hidden inside backup files.
3. Clean Recovery Points
Clean recovery points are clearly marked, allowing administrators to:
- Restore confidently from safe versions
- Avoid infected restore points
- Prevent reinfection during recovery
This dramatically reduces downtime and recovery complexity. Besides its general benefits, the feature is vital for compliance. It supports regulatory requirements, prevents downtime caused by restoring infected backups, and improves security by validating that data is malware-free before it is recovered.
How to Enable and Use Malware Scan in NAKIVO
Using the Malware Scan feature is straightforward, newer versions of NAKIVO Backup & Replication include Malware Scan out of the box.
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Install NAKIVO Backup & Replication on any supported platform, including Windows, Linux, or compatible NAS systems.
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Confirm antivirus compatibility by ensuring that the Backup Repository Transporter or designated Scan Server can integrate with a supported antivirus solution. Clam AV can be deployed on Linux transporter only.
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Install and configure an antivirus tool of your choice, such as Microsoft Windows Defender, ESET NOD32, Kaspersky, Sophos Intercept X/Protection, or ClamAV.
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Deploy the antivirus software on the Scan Server or on the server running the Backup Repository Transporter.
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Ensure virus definition files are kept up to date to maintain accurate threat detection.
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In NAKIVO, navigate to Settings > Inventory > … > Scan Servers to complete the configuration and manage connected scan components.
During the restore process, select malware detection
During the New Recovery job Wizard process select malware detection. Default selection is set to Disabled.
Select Enabled, on the Malware Detection Settings you can also select Scan Server, Scan type (Deep scan or Quick scan)
Review scan results
Check flagged items, identify infected restore points, and isolate problematic backups.
Restore only from clean recovery points
This ensures malware is not reintroduced into production environments.
Benefits of Using Malware Scan in Your Backup Strategy
Prevent reinfection during recovery
Avoid restoring infected data back into your environment.
Improve cyber-resilience
A layered backup strategy protects against both encryption and infiltration.
Reduce downtime and recovery costs
Clean backups enable faster, safer restoration.
Increase confidence in disaster recovery
Admins can clearly identify which restore points are safe.
Supports ransomware readiness
Paired with immutability, MFA, and network hardening, malware scanning adds depth to your defense strategy.
Conclusion
In a world where malware hides in backups as easily as in production systems, having a clean and secure backup set is essential. NAKIVO Backup & Replication’s Malware Scan feature helps organizations stay ahead of cyber threats by proactively detecting malicious content before it becomes a problem.
By combining backup immutability, advanced scanning, and robust recovery tools, NAKIVO provides a strong line of defense for businesses seeking reliable and secure data protection.
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