Palo Alto Networks, a network security company, used its firewall appliances in 347 volunteering organizations to track Web application usage and reports some surprising statistics. So-called Enterprise 2.0 applications such as Webmail, IM, social networking, VOIP, file sharing and other tools led to all-time bandwidth consumption highs. The most popular were social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as Google Apps such as Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar and Google Wave. These apps flourished even in heavily regulated industries such as health care and financial services. In this slide show, eWEEK takes readers through some of key findings in Palo Alto Networks' report.
of
Google Apps, Facebook Devour Enterprise Network Bandwidth
By Clint Boulton
Application Usage and Risk Report
Palo Alto Networks looked at 750 applications used in nearly 350 companies from September 2009 through March 2010.
Demographics
Palo Alto Networks focused on retail, health care, professional services and other businesses in Europe, North America and Asia-Pacific regions for this study. The study looked at how networks are being used, what applications are running on enterprise networks and the risks associated with the Web applications used in those businesses.
Geographical Equity
Webmail, instant messaging, social networking and file sharing are all being used with equal consistency. No particular geography is different from another in terms of application usage.
Vertical Equity
Financial services, universities and health care all show similar usage patterns.
Rampant Use Isn't Always a Good Thing
Social networking applications such as Facebook may be a prerequisite for university life, but they pose risks in other industries with stringent data regulation.
Instant Messaging
IM applications were detected in over 90 percent of the health care and financial services organizations.
Social Networks
Some 35 different social networking applications were detected.
File Sharing
Peer-to-peer and browser-based file-sharing applications were used with relatively high frequency in the financial services and health care industries.
Webmail
Led by Gmail, 26 browser-based e-mail clients were found in both financial services and health care industries.
Where Does Your Corporate Bandwidth Go?
To these apps, according to Palo Alto Networks.
Rise of Google Apps
Palo Alto Networks identifies 22 Google applications in use, including Google Docs, Analytics, Calendar, Orkut, Gmail, Gtalk, Voice, YouTube, Picasa and Google Wave.
Windows Azure is a public cloud platform for building, hosting and scaling applications. Try Windows Azure free for 90 days and get 20GB outbound and unlimited inbound data transfer.
Enterprise Networking News & Reviews 
Cloud Data Backup Now Makes Sense for SMBs: 10 Reasons Why 
HP, Lenovo, Asus Laptops, Desktops Offer Consumer Style for Busin[..]
Microsoft`s F#: 10 Reasons Why It`s a Hot Programming Language fo[..]
Data Center Efficiency: 10 Tips to Boost Productivity, Reduce Pow[..]
iPhone Apps to Kick Off the 2012 Summer Season 
Email Security: 10 Steps for Dealing With Dangerous Messages
See All Slideshows
Palo Alto Networks, a network security company, used its firewall appliances in 347 volunteering organizations to track Web application usage and reports some surprising statistics. So-called Enterprise 2.0 applications such as Webmail, IM, social networking, VOIP, file sharing and other tools led to all-time bandwidth consumption highs. The most popular were social networking tools such as Facebook and Twitter, as well as Google Apps such as Gmail, Google Docs, Google Calendar and Google Wave. These apps flourished even in heavily regulated industries such as health care and financial services. In this slide show, eWEEK takes readers through some of key findings in Palo Alto Networks' report.