Cisco: Federal IT Worried About Security

HERNDON, Va. -- Federal IT decision makers are more concerned about security than in previous years despite spending more time on mandated security requirements, according to a survey of more than 200 agency officials released today by networking leader Cisco®. While half the respondents contend with incompatible stand-alone products, more than 80 percent believe that embedding and integrating network security safeguards is critical for improving their agencies’ security.

Nearly 60 percent of respondents expect Internet Protocol Version 6 (IPv6) to improve their agencies’ security architecture. However, only one-third said their agencies are developing or have developed an IPv6 security architecture. Potential security issues connected to Web 2.0, a new area of focus in this year’s survey, was cited by more than 40 percent of respondents as a top concern, with social networking, file sharing, remote access and application compatibility as their agencies’ greatest Web 2.0-related security concerns.

Bots and spyware top the list of network security issues among respondents, not surprising considering the number of publicly highlighted government breaches during the past year.

“The impact of potential security lapses remains a huge concern across the federal government,” said Bruce Klein, vice president, federal area, Cisco. “While ongoing security threats remain important, one-time breaches that can affect operations or result in the loss of privacy of data are keeping IT managers up at night.”

Cisco Systems Inc. (Nasdaq: CSCO)