Key Takeaways:
- Traditional SIEM, UEBA, and XDR cannot address the speed and complexity of ephemeral cloud environments. Organizations need to opt unified CDR and ADR to achieve real-time, full-stack visibility and protection.
- By combining CDR and ADR, enterprises can correlate threats across infrastructure and applications, reducing MTTR and false positives while enabling automated, context-aware responses.
- Vendors are embedding AI-driven detections, behavior analytics, and automated responses while integrating CDR/ADR into CNAPP, XDR, and SIEM/SOAR ecosystems to deliver lower TCO and scalable protection.
- With a shortage of skilled security professionals, MSSPs and CSP partnerships are emerging as a scalable route for runtime security adoption, expanding vendor reach and delivering recurring value to enterprises
As organizations embrace cloud and cloud-native architectures, SecOps and SOC teams find themselves navigating a security landscape that’s more complex and volatile than ever before. Traditionally reliant on SIEM, UEBA, and XDR tools to manage threats in static, on-premises environments, these teams are now challenged by the ephemeral, multi-layered nature of cloud deployments where containers, serverless functions, and microservices spin up and down in seconds, expanding the attack surface beyond traditional visibility.
Cloud-native environments demand more than shift-left security and static compliance checks. They require continuous, runtime threat detection and response across the full stack. While CNAPP and AppSec tools play a vital role in pre-deployment risk mitigation, they fall short in addressing live threats traversing APIs, containers, and infrastructure layers in real time.
To keep pace with modern threat actors, organizations must evolve their threat management approach, leveraging cloud detection and response (CDR) and application detection and response (ADR) to fill the visibility and protection gaps left by legacy tools. The future of cloud security lies in unifying real-time observability with contextual threat intelligence across all layers of the application stack.
Download our latest analysis to uncover how CDR, ADR, and the emerging CNADR approach are transforming runtime security and helping organizations secure every layer of the modern cloud stack in real time.
Key Runtime Security Trends Impacting Cloud Threat Management in 2025
- Shift to runtime threat management: Organizations are moving beyond posture scanning to real-time detection, response, and investigation in live cloud-native environments.
- Convergence toward CNADR: CDR and ADR capabilities are unifying to correlate cross-layer attacks and orchestrate coordinated responses from infrastructure to application.
- AI/machine learning (ML)-powered detections: Vendors embed analytics to baseline behavior, identify anomalies and zero-day patterns, and automate incident response.
- Full-stack visibility and Zero Trust at runtime: From cloud control planes and identities to workloads (VMs, containers, Kubernetes, serverless) and in-app execution flows.
- Integration into broader platforms: CDR is increasingly bundled within CNAPP; ADR is accelerating and is expected to integrate into CNAPP/XDR stacks over the next 1–3 years.
How is your organization aligning runtime detection and response with CNAPP and XDR to reduce MTTR and false positives?
Strategic Imperatives for Cloud-native Runtime Security
Transformative Megatrends: As digital transformation accelerates, enterprises are rapidly adopting cloud-native technologies reshaping the security paradigm with ephemeral, layered runtime environments. Organizations would need to transition from traditional perimeter and legacy detection tools to advanced CNADR, CDR, and ADR solutions capable of real-time detection and response across containers, serverless functions, and microservices.
Competitive Intensity: Amid economic headwinds and pressure to optimize security investments, buyers increasingly demand affordable, effective runtime security solutions with demonstrable ROI. Vendors would require to focus on delivering lower TCO, improved operational efficiency, and outcome-based security tools to maintain competitive advantage and meet evolving customer expectations.
Disruptive Technologies: The rise of loosely coupled architectures and microsegmentation driven by containers, Kubernetes, and serverless computing demands a fundamental shift in threat detection. Legacy solutions are becoming obsolete. Future-ready organizations are investing in real-time, context-aware runtime security platforms that deliver automated threat response, granular observability, and full-stack visibility across dynamic cloud-native workloads.
Emerging Growth Opportunities in Cloud/Application Runtime Security Domain
Increasing Requirements for Runtime Security and Real-time Threat Management
As cloud adoption accelerates and runtime environments become more dynamic and distributed, CNAPP vendors are under growing pressure to embed runtime security capabilities directly into their platforms. This integration is no longer optional, it’s critical for enabling contextual threat prioritization, real-time detection, and effective incident response in ephemeral architectures.
By aligning more closely with cloud security ecosystems and XDR workflows, vendors can unlock strategic differentiation. This involves extending visibility into the runtime layer, correlating findings across containers, microservices, and infrastructure, and delivering actionable insights across the entire DevSecOps lifecycle. Vendors that seamlessly integrate with developer tools and popular SIEM/SOAR platforms while supporting open, customizable ecosystems will position themselves as indispensable partners in modern cloud security operations.
Why it matters? As attacks increasingly traverse complex application layers, legacy detection approaches fall short. Enterprises demand unified visibility and smart, AI-driven detection that can adapt to the rapid scale and complexity of cloud-native architectures. Vendors that invest in platform extensibility, runtime protection, and partner education will not only gain first-mover advantage but also foster long-term customer loyalty in a crowded and evolving market.
Rising Demand for Managed Cloud Threat Management Services
As enterprises increasingly seek CDR and ADR capabilities without the overhead of internal management, technology vendors have a timely opportunity to scale through managed service partnerships. By collaborating with regional MSSPs and CSPs, vendors can unlock access to previously untapped customer segments that prioritize outsourcing and service quality. This model strengthens customer loyalty, enables deeper market penetration, and accelerates the adoption of CNADR and CARS platforms across diverse verticals.
Integrating seamlessly into MSSPs’ workflows ranging from SIEM and SOAR platforms to ticketing and detection systems allows vendors to embed their capabilities into trusted managed threat services. In turn, MSSPs can offer differentiated cloud security solutions tailored to specific regional or industry needs. This service-centric model not only generates recurring revenue but also fuels faster product refinement through tighter customer feedback loops.
Why it matters? With the demand for runtime security outpacing the availability of skilled security professionals, MSSP-driven deployment offers vendors a scalable, high-impact route to market. It also positions them as enablers of advanced, AI-driven threat detection and DevSecOps efficiency. For vendors aiming to scale sustainably while staying close to the customer, MSSP collaboration presents a powerful lever for long-term growth and innovation.
For a more detailed deep dive into such growth opportunities, click here
What This Means for Security Leaders?
As cloud adoption accelerates and runtime threats grow in sophistication, runtime security has become mission critical. Organizations that CDR with ADR and advancing toward Cloud-Native Application Detection and Response (CNADR) will achieve:
- Faster threat investigations and reduced mean time to respond (MTTR) through correlated, context-aware detections across cloud layers.
- Lower false positives and analyst fatigue by leveraging behavior-based analytics and risk-driven alert prioritization.
- Coordinated, automated response mechanisms that mitigate threats across infrastructure, workloads, containers, and applications.
Is your runtime security strategy integrated with your SOC operations, CI/CD pipelines, and multicloud environment?
Ready to Navigate the Future of Runtime Security?
Gain exclusive insights into the fast-evolving cloud and application runtime security landscape, including the convergence of CDR, ADR, and the emerging CNADR category with Frost & Sullivans new analysis on Global Cloud/Application Runtime Security (CARS) Market
This strategic analysis offers:
- Vendor analysis across CNAPP-first providers, standalone CDR/ADR platforms, and CNADR start-ups
- Industry estimates for innovators like CrowdStrike, Palo Alto Networks, Wiz, Microsoft, and more
- Trends across CWPP, API security, cloud-focused EDR, and multicloud runtime defense
- Strategic guidance for supporting hybrid and multicloud deployments with vendor-agnostic security
Download the research now to equip your team with the intelligence needed to stay ahead of runtime threats and seize cloud-native security opportunities.
Connect with our Security Research Team at [email protected] to explore tailored strategies for your organization’s growth.
This blog is based on Frost & Sullivan’s analysis “Cloud/Application Runtime Security (CARS) Market, Global, 2025–2029,” authored by Anh Tien Vu.
FAQ Section
How does CNADR improve threat detection?”
CNADR unifies cloud and application-layer telemetry to detect cross-layer threats in real time, enabling faster, more accurate incident response across dynamic cloud-native environments.
What role does ADR play in cloud security?
ADR secures application runtime by detecting in-app anomalies, API abuse, and lateral movement, providing deep visibility into live application behavior and preventing sophisticated attacks.
Why are legacy tools insufficient for runtime protection?
Legacy tools lack real-time observability and cannot detect threats across ephemeral resources like containers and serverless functions, making them ineffective in dynamic cloud-native environments.
What are the benefits of integrating CDR into CNAPP?
Integrating CDR into CNAPP enhances runtime visibility, enables contextual threat prioritization, and streamlines detection and response across the application lifecycle within a unified platform.
Abbreviations
Cloud Detection and Response (CDR), Application Detection and Response (ADR), Cloud-Native Application Detection and Response (CNADR), Cloud-Native Application Protection Platform (CNAPP), Security Operations (SecOps), Security Operations Center (SOC), Security Information and Event Management (SIEM), User and Entity Behavior Analytics (UEBA), Extended Detection and Response (XDR), Security Orchestration, Automation, and Response (SOAR), Virtual Machines (VMs), Extended Berkeley Packet Filter (eBPF), Application Programming Interface (API), Total Cost of Ownership (TCO), Return on Investment (ROI), Managed Security Service Provider (MSSP), Cloud Service Provider (CSP), Cloud/Application Runtime Security (CARS), Continuous Integration/Continuous Deployment (CI/CD), Development, Security, and Operations (DevSecOps).
