Insurers See Increased Hacker Attacks

Insurers and other financial institutions are reporting more than twice as many security attacks on information technology systems as they did a year ago, according to a survey by Deloitte & Touche. In the New York-based consulting firm's 2004 Global Security Survey, 83 percent of survey respondents said that their systems had been compromised in the past year, compared to 39 percent in 2003. In addition, 40 percent of the respondents whose systems were attacked said that they had sustained financial losses.

Outside intrusions were more common than those from the inside, although many respondents had experienced both, the survey found. Of those who reported threats to their technological systems, 21 percent said that the attacks had come from an external source, and 13 percent cited internal sources. Nearly half reported attacks from both sources, up from 13 percent in 2003.

Despite the reported doubling of security attacks, more than a quarter of the 100 surveyed companies said that their security budgets remained flat, while nearly 10 percent had seen budget cuts. The survey also showed a declining use of security technologies. With more than 70 percent of respondents stating that they believed viruses and worms to be the greatest threat to their systems within the next year, 87 percent of respondents said that they have taken anti-virus measures. This is down from a response rate of 96 percent in 2003.