Varist, a Reykjavik, Iceland-based cybersecurity company, has introduced a malware detection platform designed for targeting threats that may be delivered through medical imaging systems, EHRs and other clinical data exchanges.

The company says its new DICOM Detection Engine is built to scan and analyze files used across PACS and RIS to identify both known malware and previously unseen threats, including attacks that use AI to automate or modify malicious code.

Medical imaging networks process large volumes of files every day, creating potential entry points for cyberattacks. Varist said its platform is designed to inspect DICOM files and healthcare messaging standards such as HL7 and FHIR without disrupting clinical workflows.
“A picture is worth a thousand words, especially when lives depend on it, and threat actors may be looking to use that to their advantage,” said Siggi Petursson, CTO of Varist. “Varist’s specialized detection for healthcare environments finds new self-evolving threats designed to evade detection by conventional systems, without adding delays or compromising patients’ care and privacy.”

The company outlined performance metrics for its broader Hybrid Detection Engine architecture, stating that each instance can process roughly 500 files per second and analyze suspicious files in less than 9 milliseconds. Varist said the platform is designed to scale across large healthcare networks and multi-site deployments.

Varist said organizations can deploy the technology locally, allowing files to be analyzed without being transferred to public cloud infrastructure.

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