IT contractors may be needed to help introduce applications to monitor social networking use at UK firms.

According to Sebastian Zabala, Panda Security's country manager for the UK and Sweden, companies need to take a dual approach to protecting corporate data from social network threats.

Education of staff is essential, he claims, ensuring that everyone is aware of just how hackers use the information on social media sites like Facebook and Twitter to commit cyber crime.

However, Mr Zebala goes on to say that new applications need to be brought in that can help to enforce company on use of these websites, which could create job roles for IT contractors.

"Employers maybe need to say, 'When you are in the office, you represent the company, and if you have a Facebook profile connected to the company, you need to abide by our rules'," he explained.

German business weekly Wirtschaftswoche recently revealed that many of the country's top firms have banned social networking in the office due to fears over industrial espionage.