Most employees don’t understand the value of data

New research from Fujitsu has revealed that only 7% of employees rate their business data higher than their personal information. The results highlight how employees don’t understand the value of data with over half (52%) of employees admitting that they value their own data more than their work data. In addition, 43% of employees either somewhat or completely agree that they have no idea of the value of business data.

As a result of this, employees are cautious and many choose not to mix personal data and work data. 89% of consumers trust the security of personal emails over work ones.

The research suggests that while over half (58%) of employees understand the risks around identity theft, more needs to be done from both businesses and employees. Only 13% of employees know exactly what security its business has in place and almost a quarter (23%) of employees feel as though their organization and they themselves could be doing more.

“With 1 in 3 (30%) employees agreeing that they worry more about losing personal data than business data organizations have a challenge on their hands,” said Andy Herrington, Head of Cyber Professional Services at Fujitsu.

“While there is no quick fix in changing these perceptions the process needs to start with the people. Educating employees about the value of and how to protect their own personal data is a great starting point and businesses will see this data safeguarding attitude trickle through the business, helping employees become part of the threat defense,” he added.

“Identity theft is no longer just about stealing identities. While classical identity theft will continue to exist, we are now seeing it being increasingly used as research gathering in social engineering as part of a larger, sophisticated cyber attack. This allows attackers to assume the identity of key individuals to access corporate networks and take sensitive information.” said Robert Arandjelovic, Director of Security Strategy EMEA at Blue Coat Systems.

“The wealth of personal information on social media accelerates the speed of information gathering and makes social engineering easier. Our research shows UK employees should treat social media as cautiously as they treat unsolicited phone calls or emails. To combat this change, businesses should seek to strike a balance between technology and educating employees on the risks of social media.”

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