# On the Security Risks of ML-based Malware Detection Systems: A Survey

arXiv: https://arxiv.org/abs/2505.10903 · HTML: https://mlsanity.com/paper/2505.10903/

## Key facts

- Cited by 1 papers in the map (data through 14 Oct 2026).
- Builds on 71 of its 190 references that are in the map.
- First posted on arXiv 16 May 2025.

## Builds on (most cited first, 30 of 71)

- [PyTorch: An Imperative Style, High-Performance Deep Learning Library](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1912.01703/) (2019)
- [Explaining and Harnessing Adversarial Examples](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1412.6572/) (2014)
- [A Unified Approach to Interpreting Model Predictions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1705.07874/) (2017)
- [Towards Evaluating the Robustness of Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1608.04644/) (2016)
- [Character-level Convolutional Networks for Text Classification](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1509.01626/) (2015)
- [Reliable evaluation of adversarial robustness with an ensemble of diverse parameter-free attacks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2003.01690/) (2020)
- [The Limitations of Deep Learning in Adversarial Settings](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1511.07528/) (2015)
- [Evasion Attacks against Machine Learning at Test Time](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1708.06131/) (2017)
- [Stealing Machine Learning Models via Prediction APIs](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1609.02943/) (2016)
- [STRIP: A Defence Against Trojan Attacks on Deep Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1902.06531/) (2019)
- [Detecting Backdoor Attacks on Deep Neural Networks by Activation Clustering](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1811.03728/) (2018)
- [Efficient Neural Network Robustness Certification with General Activation Functions](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1811.00866/) (2018)
- [High Accuracy and High Fidelity Extraction of Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1909.01838/) (2019)
- [Detecting AI Trojans Using Meta Neural Analysis](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1910.03137/) (2019)
- [Formal Security Analysis of Neural Networks using Symbolic Intervals](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1804.10829/) (2018)
- [Blind Backdoors in Deep Learning Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2005.03823/) (2020)
- [EMBER: An Open Dataset for Training Static PE Malware Machine Learning Models](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1804.04637/) (2018)
- [Efficient Formal Safety Analysis of Neural Networks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1809.08098/) (2018)
- [Randomized Smoothing of All Shapes and Sizes](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2002.08118/) (2020)
- [Malware Detection by Eating a Whole EXE](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1710.09435/) (2017)
- [TESSERACT: Eliminating Experimental Bias in Malware Classification across Space and Time](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1807.07838/) (2018)
- [Technical Report: When Does Machine Learning FAIL? Generalized Transferability for Evasion and Poisoning Attacks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1803.06975/) (2018)
- [Adversarial Malware Binaries: Evading Deep Learning for Malware Detection in Executables](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1803.04173/) (2018)
- [Learning to Evade Static PE Machine Learning Malware Models via Reinforcement Learning](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1801.08917/) (2018)
- [Functionality-preserving Black-box Optimization of Adversarial Windows Malware](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2003.13526/) (2020)
- [Transcending Transcend: Revisiting Malware Classification in the Presence of Concept Drift](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2010.03856/) (2020)
- [Yes, Machine Learning Can Be More Secure! A Case Study on Android Malware Detection](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1704.08996/) (2017)
- [SOREL-20M: A Large Scale Benchmark Dataset for Malicious PE Detection](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2012.07634/) (2020)
- [Microsoft Malware Classification Challenge](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1802.10135/) (2018)
- [Adversarial Perturbations Against Deep Neural Networks for Malware Classification](https://mlsanity.com/paper/1606.04435/) (2016)

## Built on by (most cited first, 1 of 1)

- [FraudShield: Knowledge Graph Empowered Defense for LLMs against Fraud Attacks](https://mlsanity.com/paper/2601.22485/) (2026)

## Abstract (arXiv)

Malware presents a persistent threat to user privacy and data integrity. To combat this, machine learning-based (ML-based) malware detection (MD) systems have been developed. However, these systems have increasingly been attacked in recent years, undermining their effectiveness in practice. While the security risks associated with ML-based MD systems have garnered considerable attention, the majority of prior works is limited to adversarial malware examples, lacking a comprehensive analysis of practical security risks. This paper addresses this gap by utilizing the CIA principles to define the scope of security risks. We then deconstruct ML-based MD systems into distinct operational stages, thus developing a stage-based taxonomy. Utilizing this taxonomy, we summarize the technical progress and discuss the gaps in the attack and defense proposals related to the ML-based MD systems within each stage. Subsequently, we conduct two case studies, using both inter-stage and intra-stage analyses according to the stage-based taxonomy to provide new empirical insights. Based on these analyses and insights, we suggest potential future directions from both inter-stage and intra-stage perspectives.