IM Threats Soar

Silicon reports that the number of threats targeting instant messaging (IM) is soaring, with one vendor reporting its own data shows a 1,500 per cent increase in threats year-on-year.

IMLogic's Threat Center reported the huge increase in threats occurring between October 2004 and October 2005. An unlucky 13 companies on the Fortune 50 have been hit with an IM-related security incident in the past six months

The research revealed that all threats exploited some form of social engineering in order to launch, such as tempting users with an enticement to click on a link or attachment, suggesting it is still with the power of the users who employ common sense to protect themselves