Blogs,
social networks and other
Web 2.0 services threaten the integrity of company information
systems, research firm Gartner has warned. The warning is contained
in a report on the effects of consumer-oriented digital
technologies on enterprise systems.
"Some of these services create a risk of information leaks,
others offer potential new channels for malicious infection," said
Rich Mogull, research vice-president at Gartner. "But eliminating
their use is increasingly difficult and impractical."
He warned that
smartphones and other advanced tools are targets for malware,
and that as these are currently used mainly by executives,
particular caution is required. Bans are unenforceable, he
said.
At a minimum, such devices should communicate with the corporate
systems over a
secure socket layer virtual private network, Mogull said. They
should also be encrypted to protect data in case they were lost or
stolen.
Mogull suggested firms:
● Set clear policies on what is and is not allowed, especially
with blogs.
● Detect and block incoming Java-Script exploits.
● Block any undesirable services, such as social networks.
● Use content monitors and filters and data loss prevention
tools to enforce policies on all communications channels.
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