Time to protect, educate and encourage

An individual’s innate ability to gauge what is best enables them to function not only socially, but also in the corporate environment. However, keeping data secure is proving a problem for many.
A recent survey discovered that the public has a dangerously relaxed attitude towards security. Companies do not have the processes to help educate staff or protect them. Nearly half of respondents thought they had security on their laptop, but had no idea how to use it. That is tantamount to handing out flyers advertising
the company’s secrets.
Each day, sensitive information leaves the office, copied from secure networks, or on mobile devices such as laptops or USB sticks. These devices are a common target of many wrongdoers.
So common sense is the message. There are strategies that instruct users not to store data in certain areas of the network or on mobile devices and home computers. This strategy, however, leaves the decision to do so or not to do so with the user and limits their day-to-day operations.
A more effective way to secure sensitive data is to put technical measures in place, specifically device- and content-based data encryption. This can secure data very effectively, while not interfering with day-to-day operations. Even more importantly, it can enforce policies on the user to ensuring compliance.
Accepting identity theft as part of life does not mean that all
common sense is thrown out of the window. Protect, educate and encourage; these three things will help workers understand that dangers can be avoided if there is more common sense and less apathy.
No one would allow someone to have complete access to their personal information, so why would they with their work?
Tom de Jongh is product manager at SafeBoot.