Keeping business safe

"What-if" exercises across the U.S. are showing executives and local governments how vulnerable they are to well-coordinated terrorist attacks against critical infrastructure. Corporate America is now grasping at countermeasures. Many executives are upgrading information technology systems to boost cybersecurity and setting up duplicate data centres. Companies are also experimenting with technologies that are as yet too new or expensive for widespread commercial rollout. For example, a United Technologies unit is helping build pilot electrical plants powered by fuel cells for Merck, Verizon Communications, and other companies. There is definitely a big market for security products that also make business sense.