Clearing potential Olympics network hurdle
As news and sporting sites prepare to deliver thousands of hours of Olympic content during the 17-day Beijing 2008 Olympic Games, network administrators could face a trying time managing security risks and traffic on their corporate networks.
NBC told ZDNet Asia in April it intends to broadcast and archive 2,200 hours of content on NBCOlympics.com.
CCTV.com, the official Internet and mobile TV platform of Beijing 2008, could broadcast some 3,800 hours of the Olympics, according to a ChinaDaily.com.cn report. The broadcaster has partnerships with sites such as Sohu.com, providing additional avenues for content to be made available to online viewers.
Rather than block access to sites such as NBCOlympics.com, businesses should consider adopting options that are less aggressive, according to Fortinet.
1. Offer access during non-working hours, such as before and after work, and during lunch hours.
2. Provide localized access at, for example, staff lounge areas.
3. Allow access by pre-determined time blocks.
Such high volumes of data traffic are bound to attract malicious activity, according to Fortinet. When queried, the security vendor confirmed in an e-mail Monday that customers have expressed concern over possible security threats related to the Olympics.
Benjamin Teh, Fortinet's sales director for Southeast Asia, said businesses should instill clear policies on Internet usage, and ensure that employees are aware and understand the guidelines and consequences of not observing these policies.
Companies that use filtering tools to control Web site access should inform their employees what types of sites will be blocked, Teh said in an e-mail interview.
And rather than enforce "draconian filtering practices", he noted that businesses could consider adopting options that are less aggressive and that encourage "goodwill".
"While blocking all access is an option, consider offering limited access so employees can enjoy the games without impacting their work," said Teh.
For instance, companies could make use of filters to allow access during non-working hours, such as before and after work, and during lunch hours. Alternatively, IT administrators could limit access by time blocks. Another option is to offer localized access at, for example, staff lounge areas, he said.
In addition, said Fortinet, IT teams need to ensure antispam, antivirus and Web content filtering systems are updated. Up-to-date patching is also a must during this period, the vendor said.
Symantec last month warned that online fraud incidents could increase during the Games, including online spam and scams related to the Olympics.
In a blog posting Monday, Sophos also issued a warning about fake domains that claim to sell non-existent tickets to Beijing 2008.
Beijing 2008 will kick off with the opening ceremony Friday at local time 8pm, and closes on Aug. 24.