Securing the Multifunctional Device
By Corey Smith
Every six months or so, comes a concern via the media that the MFP, or multifunction printer, is not secure and causes security holes on your network. When considering security on your network, there are some common sense approaches to ensuring you are protected from harm.
At eWeek, Rosen Sharma wrote a very simple article on securing your MFP. The article opens with the following:
Think you’ve plugged all of the vulnerabilities in your enterprise network? How about that multifunction printer over there in the sales department? As Dr. Rosen Sharma, president and CTO of Solidcore Systems explains, these devices frequently contain operating systems that are just as vulnerable to malware as your desktop computers.
While I think that this statement is a little sensational, I think that there are some underlying issues that need to be addressed. Fortunately, there are a few simple things that can be done. He lists three ways to ensure security of your mfp. Here are the two that I think that you can do right now that are simple and any network admin can do this.
- Lock down and control access to the system
- Apply patches on a schedule
They aren't revolutionary as they are the same types of things that you should do with your desktops and servers, but knowing the risk gets you closer to gaining security.
If you are interested in the full article, go to eWeek.
Corey Smith is editor-in-chief for OfficeProductNews.net and provides a common sense approach to business and technology in his blog.