Network security: Gullible users are the weakest link

Instead, malware makers have targeted their attacks at client-side vulnerabilities and rely on user gullibility. Greater education is needed, but simply telling people not to click on e-mailed links may not be enough for enterprise IT managers.

Despite improvements in system and network security, wily cybercriminals remain a significant threat, adjusting their methods to take advantage of unwary Internet users, the SANS Institute says in its report on the top 20 Internet security risks of 2007, released Tuesday.

Hackers and cyberspies have shifted their focus and moved away from the widespread malware attacks that exploited software-based vulnerabilities in favor of more targeted assaults that rely upon unsuspecting users' gullibility and custom-built applications, the report states.

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