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A Lot's Cookin' In The VoIP Pot: Page 2 of 2

That said, VoIP has yet to become ubiquitous, and it may be some time before it's as common as other mainstream technologies. Despite proponents' claims that VoIP saves money over traditional phone lines, start-up costs still can be steep, and lately security concerns have stepped to the fore as a factor that could slow the technology's widespread adoption. For example, last month, security vendor SurfControl issued a statement that warned enterprise IT departments to establish policies regarding desktop VoIP services. The Scotts Valley, Calif.-based company's Global Threat Analysis and Research team reports that the rapid growth of these services is similar to the adoption rate of public instant-messaging systems.

These services have helped foster easier and faster communication between users, but also are beginning to create "a threat vector" that can be exploited to gain entry into corporate networks, distribute spyware and Trojan horses, instigate denial-of-service attacks or steal confidential information. Desktop VoIP services, in particular, allow users to make free calls from Internet-connected PCs or handheld devices, but create a potentially unfiltered, unsecured road into a company.

SurfControl says companies need to address this issue before users inevitably develop some bad habits with VoIP.

"Because consumers often use corporate computers for both personal and business purposes, and no doubt will be compelled by the promise of free or relatively free phone services, this is a very real security threat to enterprise networks," says Susan Larson, vice president of Global Threat Analysis and Research at SurfControl. "We recommend businesses begin addressing the issue today, before it gets out of control as we saw with the use of public instant-messaging in enterprise settings." *