Hackers pose bigger threat than Y2K

Western governments and businesses are more at risk from hackers than they are from the millennium bug, according to a survey from the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS).

In its annual 'Strategic Survey', published this week, the IISS claims the Year 2000 problem is well publicised and has a clear deadline so businesses can plan in advance. But security flaws in communications systems and hackers are an unknown quantity - with many companies not realising how vulnerable they are.

The IISS added that an increasing dependence on computer networks in military operations, communications, banking, finance and transport means that security problems are potentially much more dangerous than the millennium bug. According to the survey, the US military routes 95 per cent of its communications through commercial cables and satellites.

The London-based Institute is advising governments and companies to set security procedures as soon as possible, before malicious individuals or hostile governments can carry out an attack.