The Hague, 09 Oct 2008
Symantec has released pan-European research into small companies' attitudes to security. It reveals fundamental flaws and lapses across the board, despite an appearance of security-consciousness.
Seventeen percent of respondents admitted that a recent security breach resulted in a tangible loss of business, with nearly one in 10 citing a monetary loss as well.
The research, conducted among 874 respondents, in nine countries across Europe, found that, while many were aware of 'common' threats such as viruses, spam and Trojans, many had inadequate measures in place to tackle newer threats, such as botnets. Nearly half didn't know what a botnet was.
The survey also found that employees in small businesses still did not realise that everyone needed to take responsibility for ensuring a secure IT environment.
"Symantec is naturally pleased that small businesses are aware of the threats posed in the modern computing era, but the results show that all too rarely do businesses proactively deploy the correct infrastructure to cope with the changing threat landscape,” says John Brigden, senior VP of the EMEA region at Symantec.
“Anti-virus solutions and firewalls are vital foundations but, alone, aren't enough to protect a business properly. Without comprehensive protection, small businesses can find themselves at significant risk.
“With system downtime and loss of information being among the biggest threats to a business's brand, customer loyalty and ultimately revenue generation, it is imperative that small businesses realise that simple and cost-effective IT security can ensure they withstand even the most determined attempt to breach a company's security."
Share