Attack of the 50-Pixel (Naked) Woman

Porn exists in cyberspace- what does that have to do with security? Good question. From an organizational standpoint, pornographic IT forays pose several threats. The risky nature of downloading untrusted data, sexual harassment issues in the workplace, time wasted by unproductive employees, and simple bandwidth loss are all tangible concerns with associated real financial costs. Add to this the slightly-amorphous and downright-intangible reasons that your clientele might also harbor: moral and ethical concerns, embarrassment to the organization, etc. Unfortunately, unlike other risk-mitigation, assessment, and cost-benefit analyses, those involving pornography tend to become less rational and more emotional; this, for you, is dangerous territory. Let's examine each of the threats in turn, both tangible and intangible.