Facebook – Facing the facts: The real business security threats

Social networking is a global phenomenon and with ten of millions of users, Facebook is the most visible. It is, however, the mere tip of the iceberg. The rapid growth of business networking sites enables professionals and executives to socialize and share views and information.

How much of a risk are social or business networking sites? What real security threats do sites such as Facebook, LinkedIn, INmobile.org or MySpace pose to your business?

Let’s look at the real business risks, as well as ways to solve these issues, cut time and costs, and ensure the best level of protection for your business.

Employee Web usage and productivity
The link between employee Web browsing and decreased productivity is universally acknowledged. Walk through an office at any time of the business day and you will see employees of all levels surfing websites unrelated to business activity.
 
Countless studies have highlighted these costs to business. Marshal’s recent TRACE poll showed that 60 per cent of respondents believe Facebook impacts staff productivity. However, loss of productivity is not the only threat of Web browsing. The risks of malware and offensive content employees download into your business network are perhaps more dangerous.

Without adequate security management, unlimited access to social networking sites and other Web applications leaves your organization and its reputation open to great risk.

Check out Marshal’s Q&A that provides smart Web browsing tips and, if you do decide it’s in your best interest to block specific social networking sites, read Top 5 Facebook Tips for the latest tricks on how protect your business from social networking abuse. Apply these tips to other social sites.

A safe and secure approach to employee Web browsing
So, from loss of employee productivity to the potential damage to a company’s reputation, what is the smart solution to managing employee access to social networking sites and other non-work related sites? Is the answer to enforce a total ban on staff having Web access? We don’t believe that this is the best approach for your business or your employees.

In today’s 24/7 connected world, employees neither expect nor appreciate a total workplace ban on Web access to any sites. It de-motivates staff and communicates a bad corporate message of mistrust within the organization.

We believe the best approach combines:

• Regular staff education on the security risks of information sharing on social networking sites and insight into privacy settings
• Clear definition and regular communication of your Acceptable Use Policy (AUP) combined with technology to enforce it
• Robust Web security solution, such as WebMarshal

WebMarshal is a total secure Web gateway solution that provides security against malware infections, controls Web access for personal and business use. It also incorporates a company’s acceptable usage policies through flexible, granular policy settings.

WebMarshal provides the flexibility to set limits on Web access by total bandwidth or total active browsing time. These quotas can be applied on a daily or weekly basis and may vary for specific user groups, file types, URLs and times of day.

You can also apply flexible policies that prevent personal use during work time, but allow employee access during lunchtime and after hours.

New Web security from Marshal
Industry analysts now advise organizations to look beyond simplistic URL-filtering tools and choose a comprehensive security solution. The best approach is one that integrates anti-malware, anti-data leakage, Web application control and URL filtering for downloaded as well as uploaded content.

Marshal has re-architected WebMarshal to move beyond today’s URL-filtering lists. Our next generation WebMarshal 6.0 is a 3-in-1 secure Web gateway solution – allowing a combination of technologies for Web Access Control, Data Loss Prevention and Web Threat Security into a single, easy-to-manage and highly scalable architecture. It also offers:

• Advanced security features – monitor and manage inbound and outbound content and browsing (including webmail and social networking sites)
• Greater scalability – a true enterprise class product for companies of all sizes
• Ease of administration – simple to use and easy to manage. Access to reporting at your fingertips
• Real-time website categorization
• Real-time anti-virus and anti-spyware content scanning

WebMarshal 6.0 shares the same policy engine as our leading email security solution, MailMarshal. This means increased functionality and provides enterprise-class redundancy and scalability for thousands of users, including geographically dispersed sites.

For information on how to protect your business against social networking and data leakage plus for FREE 30 day evaluations, please visit www.marshal.com and be one of the first to evaluate the new secure web gateway solution.

There are two sections that I have highlighted – I would ideally like these to hyperlink to the following:
 
Q&A
http://www.marshal.com/securitymatters/Q4-2007/qanda.asp

Top 5 Tips
http://www.marshal.com/securitymatters/Q4-2007/tips.asp