Chicago exchange uses FaceTime for secure IM

The Chicago Stock Exchange has chosen products from FaceTime so its staff can use instant messaging (IM) and peer-to-peer (P2P) applications securely.

The exchange has opted for FaceTime's IM Auditor and IM Guardian software to manage messaging securely and make sure it is in line with regulatory compliance. A value for the deal has not been disclosed.

IM and P2P have been a blind spot for many corporate IT departments. While email and other forms of communication are monitored and guarded, staff frequently conduct unrecorded and unprotected interactions internally and with the outside world in these ways.

Krysia Jacobs, Chicago Stock Exchange VP for technical services, said her organisation had been concerned by the information and network security implications of these applications.

While many organisations have chosen to standardise on typically free, consumer versions of IM from providers such as AOL, MSN and Yahoo!, more enlightened IT departments are turning to enterprise editions, which generally provide more control, albeit for a price.