Concerns Over IP Telephony Security Still Present in SMB Market, CompTIA Study Reveals.

Just half of businesses surveyed trust current security levels

OAKBROOK TERRACE, Ill. -- Concerns about the security of Internet Protocol (IP) telephony solutions continue to persist among small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs), research commissioned by the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) reveals.

A survey of 350 SMBs (500 or fewer employees) found that just 50 percent of the businesses trust the security offered today by IP telephony product and solution vendors. That's a slight improvement from a year ago, when 48 percent of SMBs surveyed said they trusted IP telephony security.

But IP telephony still lags behind traditional telephony systems (82 percent), Ethernet data networks (72) percent and wireless local area networks (60 percent) in the security confidence level SMBs have, according to the CompTIA survey.

"People are much more sensitized to disruptions in voice communications than they are with data communications," said John Venator, president and chief executive officer, CompTIA. "If the delivery of an email is delayed by 30 seconds, neither the message sender nor the receiver is likely to notice. But a 30-second gap in the middle of a phone call is another story entirely.

"Even a brief interruption in voice service can have disastrous consequences for an organization, in lost business, downtime, customer dissatisfaction, or negative publicity," Venator added. "That's why it is incumbent on IP telephony vendors and solution providers to place security at the forefront of their offerings, and not leave it as an afterthought."

When IP telephony and related technologies were in their infancy with relatively few deployments, hackers and criminals had little interest in attacking these networks. As the technology has gained broader acceptance in both the business and consumer markets, new and ever-more sophisticated security threats have arisen.

The same types of attacks that plague the data environment -- viruses, worms and Trojan horses are a few examples -- can impact an IP-based communications environment as well. Because voice and data communications are running on the same infrastructure, the entire availability of the IP network could be at compromised, putting at risk an organization's ability to communicate via either voice or data. If security considerations make the quality of IP telephony unacceptable, it becomes a barrier to conducting business. The organization's IT department must be vigilant and aware of new and changing threats to IP-based communications systems.

CompTIA, the world's largest provider of vendor-neutral certifications for IT workers, offers professional credentials that can help raise the skill level of workers dealing with convergence technologies. CompTIA Convergence+ certification validates an IT professional's knowledge and skill to perform analysis, implementation and management of data, voice and multimedia convergence applications. The certification covers areas such as telephony, network engineering, applications, hardware, architecture, management, and security. CompTIA Security+ validates mastery of critical practices for communications security, infrastructure security, cryptography, and operational and organizational security.

CompTIA commissioned IDC, a global provider of market intelligence, advisory services and events for the technology market, to survey individuals involved in purchasing voice and data communications systems for companies with 20 to 500 employees. More information on the study is available at http://www.comptia.org/sections/research/default.aspx.

About CompTIA

For 25 years, the Computing Technology Industry Association (CompTIA) has served as the voice of the world's information technology (IT) industry. Today, the Association represents the business interests of more than 20,000 member companies worldwide. CompTIA is committed to advancing the long-term success and growth of the IT industry; helping organizations maximize the benefits they receive from their investments in technology; and assisting individuals to obtain the skills and credentials they need for productive careers in IT. For more information, please visit: www.comptia.org.