There seem to be two types of articles these days about the role of instant messaging in business. One points out the hazards—exposure to viruses, employees wasting time in non-work-related IM conversations—and those that tout the business benefits. Both sides of the issue are addressed in a piece today from CNN International in a way that makes perfect sense to me: Take steps to deal with the risks so you can reap the benefits.

If only the company profiled weren’t UK’s Betfair, an online gaming company. The company offers a legitimate business perspective, with its infrastructure director noting, “We do 300 transactions a second and for any business moving that quickly, minutes and seconds can be crucial when you are looking at issues or trying to resolve problems. And we find that it is a very collaborative tool where issues can be resolved incredibly quickly.” Still, I know from experience that anybody working for a pharma or retailer or financial services company would be laughed out of the executive suite for using an online gambling firm as an example.

Nevertheless, Betfair’s approach is the one I’ve been advocating for years, the one I adopted when I heard it about a decade ago from the most enlightened IT security officer I ever met. He said, “My job is not to say no. My job is to find a way to say yes without compromising the integrity of our data.” Betfair’s take on the issue: “The technologies that the virus writers are employing are getting more and more sophisticated every day and you need leading technology to combat it.” In other words, do what you have to to protect yourself while taking advantage of the improved communication you get from IM.