Secure Enterprise 2.0 Blog

eWEEK just came out with an interesting survey on how and why businesses are “diving into Web 2.0 Waters“.

Over half of survey respondents said their companies are allowing access to social networks at work. Granted, with a pool of some 282 IT professionals, we can’t claim victory just yet. But this is still an important indicator of how enterprises are gravitating towards social consumer technology.

There is good news and bad news that arise out of this survey:

Want the good news first? - When asked what are the drivers for implementing Web 2.0 tools at work, over 70 percent said they are looking for improved communications and collaboration internally and 49 percent said they are looking to reach consumers. In other words, Enterprise 2.0 tools (social networks, RSS, social bookmarking, blogs, etc) are becoming valid business tools.

The bad news? Wherever access is blocked, workers are using these tools unsanctioned by IT or management, putting enterprise data at risk. Nearly half of respondents revealed at least one rogue Web 2.0 app at their company. The security risks are considerable if companies do not provide a secure environment for their employees.

And how are companies dealing with the groundswell? Not very effectively. When asked whether their companies had implemented policies regulating the use of Web 2.0 technologies by employees, only 28 percent said yes.

So there is still much more work to be done, though the benefits of using Web 2.0 to get things done at work are already stepping into the limelight.