NIST Provides Small Firms With Tool To Help Protect IT Systems

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), Gaithersburg, Md., has introduced an online diagnostic tool it says can assist small businesses in determining how well their IT systems are protected against failure or intrusion. Small firms, NIST notes, are particularly vulnerable because they often don't have the resources to continually monitor their information technology systems. Called e-Scan Security Assessment, the free-of-charge tool asks a series of questions in 11 critical security areas, including computer virus protection and back-up policies. After completing the assessment, the tool generates a report that indicates how well the business scored in the 11 areas and offers suggestions for improvement.