Now it's not IM, it's Internal Networks
A recent article in USA Today cites one of the more interesting threats to corporate networks - not the outsiders, but employees. Several weeks ago, we discussed the risks of IM in the workplace. Now it seems that corporations are waking up to the fact that while they have armored themselves against the outside, they may lack the necessary protection on the inside. One only has to read the headlines to learn about employees stealing the identities of customers, about employees operating file-sharing systems on corporate networks (think music sharing) and the list goes on. The article cites a Computer Security Institute/FBI study which claims that three-fourths of the financial losses traced to security breaches are from inside the business. While many organizations have effective policies to address technology in the workplace, we know that many do not. Moreover, the most effective policies will be the result of a collaboration among legal, human resources and IT staff. All to often the technology policies will be drafted by one or two of these three and, as a result, fail to address important technological, legal or human resources implications.
