Instant messaging and compliance issues: What you need to know

Where we see further red flags appearing in terms of IM and compliance is from the widespread use of consumer IM clients, such as AOL Instant Messenger, Microsoft MSN Messenger and Yahoo Instant Messenger. Most use of consumer IM clients is not formally managed, authorized or recorded. The concern for the IT manager is lack of management and control. Major IM compliance issues include record retention, as well as supervision and the protection of consumer information. Critical business issues such as confidential information theft and copyright violations are of equal concern.

Read this article and more on Instant Messaging at
IM Frame.com