Websense declared the results of an
international survey of 102 security professionals conducted at this year’s
e-Crime Congress. Nearly all respondents (98 %) believe that the law should
address serious data breaches that expose consumers’ data loss through
punishments such as fines (65%), mandatory disclosure (68%), and compensation
for consumers’ affected (55%). Sixteen percent even advocate arrest and jail
sentence for the CEO or board members.
Respondents feel that companies that are not
taking action against data loss and theft have it as an agenda item, but it’s
not yet a high enough priority (45%). Furthermore, 70% say the CEO should hold
ultimate responsibility should a breach arise. And the pressure is mounting, as
93% of all respondents believe the advent of the Internet of Things will make
companies even more vulnerable to data theft.
Over three quarters (77%) of respondents say
employees would connect to an unsecure WiFi to respond to an urgent request by
the CEO or company executive; with just over 30% of security professionals
saying they would do so themselves.
As data theft disclosures hit the headlines,
it appears to be inadvertently helping companies address the issues. Three
quarters of security professionals feel the publicity has helped other
companies create a case for budget, focus and resources. Only 15% believe that
the headlines have hindered this as they make companies feel powerless to
protect against these attacks.
Neil Thacker, Information Security &
Strategy Officer at Websense explains: “The more we talk about the issues and
share the common techniques used to breach organizations and abuse, steal or
damage data, the better. With the increasing data deluge that will only
increase with the Internet of Things, and the dilemma of an increasing
information security skills shortage, organizations have a tough challenge
ahead. Implementing a data theft prevention control that provides a
data-centric approach to security, alongside building a culture of security
accountability across the business through collaboration, is essential to keep
data protected.”
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