Big or Small – Phishers Are Menacing All Sorts of Businesses

Scammers' intrusion in big businesses' computer networks and successful filching of sensitive information such as consumer credit card numbers, is something worth appearing in news.

However, this doesn't imply that small businesses are completely safe. Small businesses & their customers too are in the line of fire from cyber crooks. A nationwide survey of IT professionals at industries with less than 500 staff members found, 59% believe their company to be safe. While actually, less than 45% are safe against Wi-Fi, phishing attacks, network invasion, and malicious web content. Trend Micro Inc, which is a security software company, conducted the survey.

Small firms usually are of the view that they are not the first choice of hackers since they eye large organizations only. In reality, hackers often hit small businesses, as they perceive that security procedures of these firms may be technologically less advanced compared to the bigger organizations that have more resources.

In Florida, 52% of IT professionals working for small businesses thought they were safe against web assaults. However, 71% of small firms polled insufficient protection against online frauds like pharming attacks, as per the survey.

Just 41% of small firms polled safeguard against Wi-Fi attacks, malicious web content, phishing assaults, and other online threats. While just 33% of small businesses armed their wireless networks against online threats. The survey found that 33% of small firms allowed their staff to use personal laptops for official work, whereas 55% provided their employees with web access to critical data like company financials and employee records.

Just 40% can remotely access their machines via VPN (Virtual Private Network) protection. It takes more than a week's waiting time for 19% of the surveyed small businesses to decommission the network access and email accounts of an employee who's been terminated. Employees don't need to frequently change their passwords in 27% of small firms that were covered by this survey.

In another report, above 70% of malicious activities affecting small businesses were attributed to internal problem, Fountain Valley security-firm Talon Executive Services Inc. said. Despite latest technology & protection against outside hacking assaults, small firms usually fall prey to phishing from inside.

There're various steps firms must take to safeguard the data from unauthorized employees and outside scammers, said Talon Executive Services Inc.'s president Barry Mozian. Los Angeles Times reported this on May 22, 2007.

Related article: Bugs Swell In Browsers in 2006

» SPAMfighter News - 6/7/2007