The security threats and their strategic implications - Essay Example

The security threats and their strategic implications Introduction With the advent and development of technology, various technological applications have been adopted for individual use and also for organizational purposes. Social networking applications (SNAs) is part of the technological advancement whose popularity has rapidly increased in the recent years with the rise of globalization where there is the urge of interconnectivity among individuals and organizations irrespective of the distances involved. The social networking applications are mainly used for communication and dissemination of information that could be of essence for continuity of the organizations. Although the application of technology in different activities and practices in organizations is associated with a lot of benefits, there are also security threats that go hand in hand with it (Balogun and Hailey, 2004). This piece of work examines the security threats suffered by organizations that utilize social networking networks and the strategic implications they have on the particular organizations. The essay also tries to identify the means and approaches adopted by organizations in their effort to achieve strategic change using ICTs, the key issues associated with the approaches, and practical examples of effectiveness of the ICTs in bringing about strategic change through case examples, (Coca-Cola Company Ltd.). Literature Review There is a lot of relevant literature from research undertaken in this field which can help us in the understanding of this topic more specifically the security threats associated with social network applications and their implications in organizations. According to Jenny (2010), social networking is a tool that has helped organizations meet their goals for instance through the establishment of business contacts. Jenny also names the four best social networking free applications as the Fishbowl, Flexamail, Tweetdeck, and Microsoft Silverlight 4 client for Facebook. Fishbowl is an application that helps in the integration of social networking with the computer desktop. Flexamail on the other hand allows for easy access of different social network sites like Facebook and Twitter while Tweetdeck allows for easy management of multiple conversations accounts. Microsoft Silverlight 4 client for Facebook allows for the incorporation of a more serious tone in the information. Caldelli and Parmigiani (2004) assert that Information has been recognized as an essential asset to any organization irrespective of its size or type and many organizations have discovered the benefits of managing it. Different information management systems have been designed to handle different business activities for instance production and sales. An information system provides the organization’s management and other concerned individuals or personnel with current and relevant information in regard to its performance and hence assists in making appropriate changes. Application of a dynamic ICT platform in an organization is associated with the success of the business through the achievement of the organization’s goals and objectives as it ensures that efficiency, effectiveness and economy is achieved in the various practices and activities of the organization. This through the reduction of time that could have been used, allowing reusability of the organization’s resources and more so reducing the cost incurred for instance in terms of middlemen and space utilization (Harigopal, 2006). According to Jorge (2002), information communication technologies are a contributing factor towards growth and development of an organization through facilitating information dissemination, allowing for access to technology and knowledge and providing a variety of communication capabilities among other benefits. There are however many challenges that are associated with the use of information communication technology (ICT) especially due to the requirements that are needed to facilitate the effective establishment and implementation of the strategies. For instance high cost of access and limitation of infrastructure, lack of knowledge or awareness of the ICT policy which may compromise an organization’s activities when not adhered to. An effective ICT program should be flexible enough to ensure that it takes into account the specific organization’s goals as well as striking a balance between the ICT tools or elements with the user needs. Zaidman, Shwartz and Te’eni (n.d) argue that there are many security threats that are linked with application of information communication technologies like the social network applications and they all revolve around the information contained in the networks. The utilization of social networks in organizations make the information regarding the organization to be susceptible to various dangers for instance malicious use by hackers and crackers, unauthorized access and manipulation, invasion by competitors where they can access an organization’s information and use it for their benefits at the expense of putting the particular organization at a loss and even destruction of the information among others. There is also the risk of authenticity where many people do not consider the social networks to be credible sources of information and hence they would not trust the business information they get from the sites (Chang, 2007). This is due to the aspects associated with the internet for instance telemarketing where people are conned. The use of social networks has also reduced human contact and face to face communication which is very appropriate is slowly being replaced with machine to machine communication. Some services and practices require the use of face to face communication. The inability to control the social networks is also a key issue of concern when it comes to information security as different people are able to access the information from different points. Lin (2006) provides important information regarding system security threats and controls. Social networks and interconnectivity is associated with a lot of threats especially where the systems are not well handled. He defines system security threats as the acts perpetrated with the main aim of affecting the integrity of the organization’s systems which in return affects the reliability and privacy of the organization’s information. Some information should under all circumstances be kept secret especially from the competitors to allow the organization enjoy some benefits. The networks should therefore provide for maximum security of the information to allow for business growth and continuity. Some of the threats of a network include adware, spyware, viruses, spam among others. This could be prevented through establishment and implementation of effective access controls and installation of quarantine software. Theft of proprietary information is another major form of threats of networks and information systems. There is the risk of access of sensitive information like trade secrets, credit card information and customer information. Financial fraud is also facilitated by networks. Financial fraud associated with networks include identity theft, scam e-mails and fraudulent transactions through organizations implications. An organization could also be implicated falsely through social networks where its image is displayed negatively for example through misinformed advertisement. An organizations image is therefore tarnished making it questionable and worse still it may bring law compliance related issues. There should be preventive and remedial measures to ensure that the organization maintains its reputation at all times. Case study: Coca-Cola Coca cola is one of the biggest multinational companies around the world. Its headquarters are located in Atlanta, Georgia. The company is involved in manufacture, distribution as well as marketing of non-alcoholic beverages (Lopata, 2008, par 2). The company also deals with the manufacture of non alcoholic syrups which it supplies all over the world. Therefore, the marketing process becomes very critical to such kind of company. Traditional methods of advertisement are not efficient in such cases and therefore the company is forced to adopt the current mechanisms. In the contemporary business world, social networking applications have significantly increased (Boyd & Ellison 2007). This has been fueled by the increased interconnections in the society. Many companies have embraced this technology in their day to day operations. Most of the multinational companies are using social network in marketing (Anonymous, 2009, par 1). Coca-Cola Company is one of these companies which have embraced social networking in their operations. It has taken the advantage of the current developments in the social network platforms. The company has taken the advantage of technology in order to overcome this problem. Coca-Cola has for long been using social networking in its day to day operations. Some of the main social networks which Coca Cola uses include the Facebook, Twitter, EasyFreedAds Blog News, Google, Yahoo Buzz and Myspace. Coca Cola began applying social networks with CokeTag as a marketing tool which improved its marketing strategies significantly (Sapojnikova, 2010, par 3). One of the main operations which has benefited from social networking in the company is marketing. Earlier this year, the company created a new office of digital communications and social media (Sapojnikova, 2011, 1). The main reason for this action was to enable the company to connect people to its brands and the company all over in the world. This was a very important step for a company which has been heavily relying on the traditional methods of advertisement. One of the main social networks applied by Coca-Cola Company through which it has managed to reach many people around the world is the Facebook. Currently, the Coke Facebook community has more than three million members (Sapojnikova, 2011, 4). This makes it the second largest community in the Facebook. According to Coca Cola’s director of heritage communications Phil Mooney, Coca Cola has spent a lot of time in building their presence (Sapojnikova, 2011, 2). This has significantly contributed in raising their level of popularity. Analysis The use of Facebook social network application in the Coca Cola Company has recorded recommendable results. The company’s Facebook community is expanding at a very high rate. For instance, current statistics indicates that the community had three million members early this year (Sapojnikova, 2011, 4). This is the second largest community after Obama’s community. In other words, the company has managed to reach a greater number of people across the world. Therefore, Coca-Cola has managed to reach a greater number of people through social network. This has reduced the marketing costs since it is cheaper to sell the company’s brands through a social network. Despite of these achievements which the social network has achieved in terms of selling the company’s brand, the strategy has failed to some extent. For instance, the company has more than 100,000 employees from all over the world who speaks different languages and using various social media platforms (Harbison, 2010, par 8). In this situation, the company faces a very big challenge. This has threatened the success of the social networking processes. Despite of these achievements related with social networking applications, there are several threats posed to the company through their usage. For instance the company faces a threat of data loss through viruses. When a company loses important information, it may lead to stagnation of unimportant operational activities which rely heavily on this information. For instance, orders and supply of products to various destinations may delay in case the company loses important information on these. These significantly affect the profitability of an organization. The social network applications involve many people and therefore the risks of viruses are very high. Coca Cola Company has faced a lot of problems from the virus threats. The company faces a threat of losing some of its important data which can affect its productivity. However, it is not advisable for any organization to withdraw from social network application from its day to day operations as they are of great importance (Barabas, 2002). Therefore, the company has managed to use antivirus software to solve the problem. This has compressed the problem although the risks are still high. It still remains dangerous since there is increased exchange of information from outside the organization. Another security threat which the company has faced from the use of social network applications is exposure of the company's sensitive data. In every company, there are some data which need to be kept confidential. There are some data whose exposure can pose a threat to organization’s success (Belanger, 2002). However, the use of the social network in marketing has threatened the confidentiality of such data. When an organization’s sensitive information is leaked out, this poses a threat to its competitive advantage as the unique strategies are known to their competitors. With time, organization’s strategies may become impotent as their competitors realize their success secrets. Organization’s important information like the patent rights may also be exposed to their competitors. Once again, this may lead to loss of company’s competitive advantage. However, Coca Cola Company has reduced exposure of such information by keeping close check on its systems with the help of information technology experts to detect any attempt to intrude into the company's sensitive information. As Perrig (2004) observed, wireless security network has significantly been helpful to many organizations in maintaining security. Coca Cola has also benefited from these efforts. In other words, the company has maintained as close check on its system to protect its sensitive data. While marketing the company’s products through social networking, it requires the company to make adjustments now and then to adapt to new changes. This requires the company to prepare budget for these expenses more frequently than they used to do it in order to keep up with new changes. This has affected the expenditure of the company towards these adjustments. It also requires intensive perpetual research in order to keep up with these developments. In other words, the company has incurred a lot in refining its strategies. In some cases, certain countries restrict some social networks from their countries. This poses a big problem especially to the multinational company like Coca Cola whose customers are located all over the world. This has affected the performance of the company in such areas. It also threatens the brand of the company. Despite of these challenges, Coca Cola has managed to sell its brand all over the world. For instance, if the term Coca cola is mentioned in most parts of the world, most of the people will at least have an idea about Coca-Cola (Corporate Eye, 2011, par 1). The adoption of these social networks at Coca Cola has brought changes at the company. Displacing the existing systems in an organization can sometimes be problematic especially when IT changes affects business partners (Anonymous, 2004, par 2). Coca Cola has minimized these complications through close consultations with its partners. The company has also managed to create new markets through social networking applications like Facebook (Cowie, 2010, par 2). Conclusion It is evident that social network applications are gaining popularity day by day as individuals and organizations realize their benefits especially in communication. This is because change is inevitable and organizations have to adopt it to gain a competitive advantage. The internet has contributed to the formation of a global village where social networks for instance Facebook, Twitter, My space, LinkedIn, Friendster and hi5 among others usually connect a large group of people irrespective of the distance that separate them. The social networks have also a lot of drawbacks as discussed above. For instance, Coca Cola has faced a threat of viruses which has threatened the security of its data. The privacy of some of the company's sensitive information is also threatened. However, organizations should adopt effective strategies to deal with these issues. Reference List Anonymous. (2004). Change Management. Retrieved from http://ssrm.co.uk/change_it.htm Anonymous. (2009). Coca Cola embraces Social Network Marketing. Retrieved from http://www.socialnetworkingtodayblog.com/?p=2051 Barabas, A. (2002). 'Evolution of the social network of scientific collaborations'. Journal of Informetrics. Volume 311, Issues 3-4, 15 August 2002, Pages 590-614. Belanger, F. (2002). 'Trustworthiness in electronic commerce: the role of privacy, security, and site attributes'. Journal of Strategic Information Systems. Volume 11, Issues 3-4, December 2002, Pages 245-270 Boyd, D. & Ellison, N. (2007).'Social Network Sites: Definition, History, and Scholarship'. Journal of Computer-Mediated Communication.Volume 13, Issue 1 DOI: 10.1111/j.1083-6101.2007.00393.x Caldelli, A., and Parmigiani, M.L. (2004). Management Information System: A Tool for Corporate Sustainability. 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Retrieved from http://www.articlesbase.com/social-marketing-articles/social-media-marketing-success-stories-1991645.html Sapojnikova, S. (2011). How Coca-Cola is Reinventing their Marketing Strategy with Social Media. Retrieved from http://www.tech-seeker.com/blog/how-coca-cola-is-reinventing-their-marketing-strategy-with-social-media/ Zaidman, N., Schwartz, G.D and Te’eni, D. (n.d). Challenges to ICT implementation in multinationals. Retrieved from http://www.deepdyve.com/lp/emerald-publishing/challenges-to-ict-implementation-in-multinationals-0ICFIeJY2W Read More