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Drive-by hacking a new and serious threat to computer security
Portsmouth based Internet experts Page Hosting, is warning businesses of the new threat to Internet Security, and those operating wireless networks, called Drive-by hacking.
With the widespread use of wireless communications hacking is being made easier claims Tom White, Director of Page Hosting, sister company of The Page Designer. Whilst eaves-dropping on ordinary wire based connections is always a concern, locating the wires, then attaching a device which listens to the network requires sophisticated equipment or some skill to achieve without being discovered by interrupting the flow of data or breaking the cable. However, with the widespread use of wireless communication this task is made easier.
Tom White says, 'All someone has to do with wireless communication is drive up to the building, switch on a lap top computer and start looking for a network, hence the term 'drive-by hacking'.
Many company networks are poorly protected against this type of hacking, which could lead to drive-by hackers downloading huge volumes of confidential material very quickly and from a nearby car park. Businesses continually underestimate security claims Mr White. His views are backed by a recent survey from KPMG which found that 41 percent of 500 executives within multinational companies believed they were susceptible to serious security breaches. This figure could be much higher for small and medium sized businesses says Mr White.
He adds, 'Techniques such as encrypting the network traffic, scrambling it so that only the sender and receiver can decipher the data, using firewalls and simply ensuring everyone uses good passwords can go a long way to improving network security'.
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