Securing Web 2.0: We All Like To Jump On the Next New Thing

When something works others will adopt it. It’s true whether you are talking about TV reality shows, green products or IT security.  This was evident at the Gartner IT Security Summit  that I attended last week, where there were several references in the keynotes and breakout sessions to the trend toward end user adoption of collaborative applications such as Facebook and other Web 2.0 apps.  

 

The current catch phrases are based on the premise that the Internet has changed. Some call it the “Consumerization of IT,” some call it Enterprise 2.0 – and I believe I even heard it called “People-Based Computing.” (PBC)

 

No matter what you call it, IT security administrators must make a judgment call about the usefulness of these new real-time Internet tools and whether or not to spend money on security and management solutions. Are employees really going to use these tools to do business? Or are they virtually hanging out with friend on MySpace during work hours? And what if MySpace becomes Facebook, or Second Life, and then Twitter or Pownce or a widget… or whatever else the latest Web 2.0 application is?

 

The lines between work and personal time are blurring more than ever, and IT is continually challenged with “the next new thing.” The new Internet will create new strategic issues to sort out over the next few years. Will a SaaS model for security be considered?  How will virtualization impact security deployments?  These were the types of issues that were raised and debated over the three days.  All said, a solid conference that offered a combination of actionable recommendations and thought-provoking considerations.

 

By the way, Google started its keynote at the Gartner IT Security Summit with a message about collaborative applications, and I was pleased (and proud, I must admit) to see their reference to our very own Chris Boyd as a contributor to their security efforts.