Social networks remain corporate bandwidth bandits

gallery

Facebook hits from corporate networks are almost double those of Google’s search engine, according to research.

What's more, the rate is growing rapidly.

The findings come from managed security company Network Box which tracked 14 billion URLs between April and June. Facebook experienced over one billion hits, 10.8 per cent more than during the previous quarter.

"Although many businesses now use social networks for work, it’s unlikely that they’re the top working priority for most employees," said Simon Heron, internet security analyst for Network Box.

"Clearly human factors, such as the desire to socialise while at work, play a large part.”

Despite Google and Facebook accounting for 11.1 per cent of the hits when combined, the rising bandwidth hog is YouTube. The video-streaming site does not even feature in the top five in terms of hits but claims 10.2 of available corporate bandwidth. This is twice that of Facebook and four times as much as Google.

The introduction of social networking sites onto the corporate domains brings with it serious security risks, both from physical and information disclosure viewpoints.

At number five in terms of hits lurks Google-owned DoubleClick.

DoubleClick handles Google’s advertisement-serving service, which legitimately places ads on third-party websites. On several occasions, clients have found innocent-looking adverts appearing with hidden redirection links to malware sites. Additionally, the service uses tracking cookies which trace web surfers’ movements from site to site around the internet.

The days when web access was strictly controlled are truly over and a new breed of workforce is appearing, according to Heron.

“Ultimately, businesses need to acknowledge this new behaviour, and concentrate on how they control this, and on defending the corporate network against the increased risk factors.”

Email to a friend

Print this page