Home users let viruses in through the back door

NEWS Nearly a fifth of US computer users don't think twice about opening unknown email attachments despite the recent spate of high-profile attacks from worms such as SirCam and Code Red. According to a study by security specialists Central Command, a worrying number of respondents said they weren't planning to change their security practices or online activities. Graham Cluley, senior technology consultant at anti-virus firm Sophos said that although many businesses had developed rigorous security policies, organisations' Achilles' Heel was often home workers who spread malicious programs through VPNs or via infected floppy disks. Cluley said: "Home users are more lackadaisical and are likely to click on any saucy-looking email. Businesses have to recognise they're only as secure as their dumbest employee." He said that businesses need to drill an awareness of security issues into every employee, whether they're logged on in the workplace or remotely. He said: "It's a matter of beating the message into users to think before they double click. The bugs are in the users' brains it seems, rather than in the operating systems, which allows the viruses to keep on spreading." Cluley predicted that UK users were just as bad at starting virus outbreaks as those in the US. However, he said Americans were more prone to hack attacks due to having faster, 'always on' internet connections. Central Command polled 75,000 users in the US via email.