MyDoom worm
In the wake of MyDoom, small companies remain particularly vulnerable to attacks
23 02 2004
Small companies may be exposing themselves to greater risk of hackers and viruses due to lack of awareness of a flaw in Microsoft's Windows operating system.
Earlier this month, Microsoft urged businesses to update their security using patches available for free on the firm's main website.
At the same time, a study reported that attacks on small enterprise website have increased by ten times their normal rate while the MyDoom worm, the latest and most serious example of malicious code to target businesses, reached one million infections in its first day.
Secure internet specialist IntY is now warning that, in the wake of MyDoom, small companies remain particularly vulnerable to attacks of this nature.
The problem is believed to stem from a belief on behalf of smaller firms that they will not be targetted because they have fewer computers than larger companies. This belief leaves them less likely to respond to warnings such as the one issued by Microsoft.
Neil Watson, marketing manager at intY, said: 'Many small businesses believe that they have full security protection, as some packages do include a firewall. But unless the firewall is independent from the desktop machines and proactively managed, they will be exposed to new security holes in the future.'
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