Web hosting users told of social networking threats

Social networks could be a concern for those firms making use of web hosting packages considering the amount of information that is found in such websites. It has now been suggested that social network users share too much sensitive information on these sites.

Such data could be useful hackers looking to gain access to company systems, according to Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at Sophos. He claimed that around a third (33 per cent) of online users have the same password for every site they access.

"If hackers grab your password on one site, they can use it to unlock everything else about you. Chances are that you also use that password inside your company," Mr Cluley commented.

"The danger is that if you completely block staff from their favourite social networking site that they will find a way around the ban – potentially opening up even greater holes in corporate defences," he added.

Mr Cluley admitted, however, that social networks can be beneficial for some organisations, as it lets them network with customers as well as potential prospects. He advocated the use of guidelines to keep the company protected.

His comments come after research from Palo Alto Networks revealed that the use of social networking and collaborative applications for company operations has spiked in the past six months. According to the organisation, this has led to an increase in new corporate and security risks.

Rene Bonvanie, vice-president of worldwide marketing at Palo Alto Networks, stressed that this rise has happened far quicker than was predicted and it would be "naive" to believe that outdated security practices can handle the increase.

It was recently reported that pop star Britney Spears’s Twitter and MySpace accounts have been hacked. Messages on her Twitter page claimed that she worshipped the devil.

Written by Sarah Woolf.