The seizure of counterfeit IT equipment has raised concerns over IT security.

Computer Weekly reports that £38 million worth of fake Cisco equipment was impounded by the US authorities last week, but a spokesperson warned that firms still need to be on their need to be on their guard.

Assistant attorney general Alice Fisher of the Criminal division said: "It is critically important that network administrators in both private sector and government perform due diligence in order to prevent counterfeit hardware from being installed on their networks."

Computer Weekly also reports a warning from SecureTest that UK firms' IT security procedures need to be adapted in order to meet the threat posed by fake hardware as traditional measures did not tend to pick it up.

Last week, Tony Neate of Get Safe Online said a study conducted by his firm indicated that individuals and small businesses are increasingly aware of potential IT security threats.

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent) In a recent survey of SMEs for Connect, the two most important benefits of outsourcing were 'guaranteed response times' and 'allowing in-house IT staff to concentrate on more strategic issues'