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By Pia Heikkila, 12 May 2000 00:15

NEWS The recent spate of high profile virus attacks is due to companies not making security a top priority, according to Chris Royle, director of security specialist Objectronix. Speaking exclusively to silicon.com, Royle warns businesses of a difficult future if they choose to ignore IT security. He said: "The recent events have shown that a crisis point will come, although we are not quite there yet." Royle claimed some sectors are particularly vulnerable due to their negligence of security issues. He said: "Design companies often pay very little attention to Web site security and this is practically an invitation to a denial-of-service attack. But the absence of a coherent policy is evident across the board. Even some blue chip companies - such as a certain telephony provider - choose to ignore security, and as a result become a target for an attack and suffer severe losses." Despite the damage they can cause, virus and denial-of-service attacks do have some positive effects, according to Royle. He said: "As a result of these attacks, security is reaching top priority in board-level decision making. The executives are now asking for Web sites to be designed by companies who are aware of security issues." You can watch the full interview with Chris Royle in the Ebusiness Security Channel (http://www.silicon.com/a37450 ).