Companies wary of instant messaging security

Small to medium businesses (SMEs) in the UK are wary of the security threats posed by instant messaging (IM) software.

One expert on IM claims that SMEs feel threatened by the security implications of using software such as MSN Messenger and Yahoo IM.

This can cause problems for businesses though, as private, internal messaging clients do not record conversations like their public counterparts.

Mickael Remond, chief executive of ProcessOne, said: "Businesses can be afraid of the security implications… A lot of companies are concerned about the use of IM in a way, particularly the public ones like MSN and Yahoo."

"Some companies like to archive everything."

An investigation by Vanson Bourne this year found that 90% of financial services are concerned by the security risk of allowing employees to use IM software, while 25% of retail firms keep an audit trail using public messaging programmes.

The Royal Association of Insurers found this month that the majority of home-run businesses were bearing up well against impending recession.