3 December 2007
by Simon Quicke
Vulnerabilities around VoIP have been highlighted as one of the major threats next year as cyber criminals target routes into company networks.
The McAfee Virtual Criminology report has named VoIP, along with online banking and social networks, as a key area for threats.
"VoIP is definitely something we are starting to see more of and there are phishing attacks where people are being asked for bank details. We have been carrying out this survey for three years and we are seeing more concerns about VoIP," said a McAfee spokesman.
"The cyber criminals are going for the data and where the money is," he added. "It is moving to become organised crime online because the risks are a lot less, because it can be done anonymously and very few people have been caught for this type of crime."
He said that there was an increased awareness of online threats but still a significant number of customers that only had anti-virus to protect themselves. Resellers needed to target those users to make them aware of the rise in cyber crime, he said.
One unified communications reseller said customers were already worried about VoIP and were asking for advice about security at installation.
"We have had this raised a few times by customers and they are asking if VoIP could be attacked as another route onto their networks," he said.
Jonathan Lassman, director of security reseller Network Technology Solutions, said most customers were dealing with data leakage threats as a priority, particularly in light of the recent HMRC disc loss scandal.
"The VoIP stuff would be overshadowed by data leakage concerns following not just the HMRC but other examples this year like TK Maxx," he said.
