Released on: October 25, 2007, 12:07 pm

Press Release Author: Claudiu

Industry: Internet & Online

Press Release Summary: The success of online commerce has ignited a rush to the Web
as companies of all sizes seek to automate their processes, stay connected, cut
costs and drive incremental revenue. This rush, which began in earnest at the turn
of the century continues today and has attracted a proportional amount of
cybercrime. A Canadian security expert offers recommendations to protect both
businesses and individuals.

Press Release Body: Online retailers and web-enabled companies face a tough
challenge ahead of the busy 2007 holiday season, as cyberthreats and security
breaches will take their toll on businesses and consumers.

Toronto, October 24, 2007 /PR/ The success of online commerce has ignited a rush to
the Web as companies of all sizes seek to automate their processes, stay connected,
cut costs and drive incremental revenue. This rush, which began in earnest at the
turn of the century continues today and has attracted a proportional amount of
cybercrime. A Canadian security expert offers recommendations to protect both
businesses and individuals.

Claudiu Popa, president of a Toronto-based security consultancy, sees an alarming
trend towards more intelligent attacks that target not only consumers through
phishing emails and virus infections but also the businesses that invest in the
latest web functionality.

A professional security auditor, Mr. Popa sees a wide variety of vulnerabilities
that threaten to impact the busy holiday season this year: "This year is unlike
previous years in that the focus of organized cybercriminals will be to go big and
to do this, they will leverage the more advanced hacking techniques that have been
emerging over the past little while. Businesses that rely on Web applications that
have not been professionally tested for security and privacy should brace themselves
for the impact of privacy breaches, data theft, server and online application
hijackings." said Popa. "Most companies fail to catch security breaches, giving them
a false sense of security. It is critical to understand that these entirely
preventable failures endanger the privacy of customers and compromise the very
existence of businesses.".

After a record-breaking 2006 exceeding 100 billion in online sales and over 3
billion in cyberfraud, this year promises to be bigger on both counts. Best
practices and proven security standards need to be adopted ahead of the busy holiday
season and rigorously followed by all organizations. These include security
awareness education for all employees and management, professional security
assessments for networks and online applications as well as rigorous, on-going
monitoring to prevent privacy or security incidents.

"Almost ¾ of all web merchants and Internet companies spent less than 1% of their
revenues to combat cybercrime and online fraud. I don't believe that this is going
to be acceptable this year as companies will feel the sting of financial losses,
banks will do what they need to protect themselves and consumers will not take
privacy breaches lightly. Online companies need to be much more accountable for
their security lapses and that takes commitment. The good news is they can leave the
rest to us."

For individuals and companies seeking to report cybercrime, Informatica freely
provides a comprehensive list of links at www.SecuriyandPrivacy.ca. The company also
offers the acclaimed VerifyT security assessments, employee security awareness
certification and a complete series of consulting solutions.

About Informatica

Toronto-based Informatica Corporation is a renowned Canadian information risk
management organization. Over the past 18 years, Informatica has provided
consulting, analysis, implementation and training solutions to SME and enterprise
clients in diverse sectors and world regions. Informatica clients include financial
organizations, government, non-profit organizations, services, manufacturing and
health organizations. Informatica is the only organization that offers FlexSecure
VerifyT web site and application security assessments, standards-based audits and
WorkLifeT Security and Privacy Awareness Certification in addition to published
research, emerging threat analysis, corporate risk strategy, security project
management and customized corporate training

For media enquiries and security solutions contact:

Claudiu Popa, CISSP, PMP, CISA
President & CSO, Informatica Corporation
416-431-9012 Info@InformaticaSecurity.com

CO: Informatica Corporation Information Security/Risk Management
ST: Ontario
IN: HTS
SU:


Web Site: http://

Contact Details: 67 Yonge St, M5E1J8
416-431-9012
Info@InformaticaSecurity.com