Symantec flags up SMB security threats

Security vendor Symantec has warned SMBs about being used by hackers as a route into larger firms they may do business with.

To protect end users from this, the firm recently launched Symantec Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition 2013.

"One of the things that I have seen is that the threat landscape has changed," said Jay Epton, director of SMB and distribution sales of Symantec at an event in London yesterday.

"Not only are we seeing more attacks, but we actually see the type of attacks changing all the time."

Epton said that, in this day in age, it is the younger population that are creating and spreading viruses to bring down businesses.

He also warned that SMBS are increasingly being used as a small stepping stone to get to larger enterprises, and finding themselves at the mercy of malware authors.

"Think about a smaller financial institution that might work with Barclays, think about a small engineering firm that might work with Honda," said Epton.

"They may use that as a stepping stone to get into these larger organisations."

Symantec Endpoint Protection Small Business Edition 2013 provides SMBs with protection from malware, viruses and is also designed for use with soon-to-be launched Windows 8.