Risk: Informational
NTA Monitor's 2006 VPN Security Report reveals that the IT industry is the most vulnerable sector to network attacks. Tests were conducted on a variety of sectors - charities, finance, government, IT, manufacturing and utilities.
Roy Hills, Technical Director at NTA Monitor, said: "There is a certain kudos attached to infiltrating companies in the technical arena, making the IT industry a very attractive target to attackers. It's worrying that organisations that many would assume to be the safest do in fact appear to be the most vulnerable."
Of the IT organisations tested, an average of nine vulnerabilities were found per organisation, most of which were classified as low level risks. However, the number of medium risks identified, which may enable external attackers to disrupt VPN services or gain unauthorised network access, was above average, indicating that IT is the most insecure sector.
Overall, the 2006 VPN Security Report findings show that although organisations tested have taken the necessary steps to reduce high risk security vulnerabilities, medium, low and informational level risks are still very common leaving companies and public sector organisations vulnerable.
Of all the risks discovered, 17% were classified as medium level risk while the majority (64%) were of a low criticality level. The lower risk vulnerabilities will allow attackers to gain valuable information, which combined with other vulnerabilities, can lead to a denial of service attack or let hackers view and use confidential data.
The full report is available from NTA Monitor - call Sarah Davey on 01634 721855 or email marketing.nta@nta-monitor.com