Are Remote Users Threatening Your Security?
By Esther Shein
The troubling news is remote access remains as much of a security threat for enterprise as it ever was. The good news is that companies can diminish the likelihood of a breach with the right management and technology.
"Remote access is probably the key problem to all problems we have within security,'' says Doug Howard, chief operating officer at BT Counterpane, a managed security firm in Chantilly, Va. "10 years ago, most of the IT security concerns we have today didn't exist because you didn't have people logging into remote systems. Today, in order for anyone to do business, you have to let other people inside our systems whether it be partners, remote workers or suppliers."
Securing networks that are accessed remotely is as much a business issue as it is a technology one, security experts say. Preventing security breaches is not just about putting layers of technology on the network -- but ensuring that the technology is properly managed.
A Management Issue
While remote access is a manageable threat, it's one that tends to be a low priority for IT, says Jon Oltsik, a senior analyst at Enterprise Strategy Group in Milford, Mass. (article continues)
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