From Europe, although I doubt it’s any different in the U.S.:
- One in five workers (21%) let family and friends use company laptops and PCs to access the Internet.
- More than half (51%) connect their own devices or gadgets to their work PC.
- A quarter of these do so every day.
- Around 60% admit to storing personal content on their work PC.
- One in ten confessed to downloading content at work they shouldn’t.
- Two thirds (62%) admitted they have a very limited knowledge of IT Security.
- More than half (51%) had no idea how to update the anti-virus protection on their company PC.
- Five percent say they have accessed areas of their IT system they shouldn’t have.
One caveat: the study is from McAfee, and as the article rightly notes:
Naturally McAfee has a vested interest in talking up this kind of threat….
And finally:
Based on its survey, McAfee has identified four types of employees who put their workplace at risk:
- The Security Softie – This group comprises the vast majority of employees. They have a very limited knowledge of security and put their business at risk through using their work computer at home or letting family members surf the Internet on their work PC.
- The Gadget Geek – Those that come to work armed with a variety of devices/gadgets, all of which get plugged into their PC.
- The Squatter – Those who use the company IT resources in ways they shouldn’t (i.e. by storing content or playing games).
- The Saboteur – A very small minority of employees. This group will maliciously hack into areas of the IT system to which they shouldn’t have access or infect the network purposely from within
I like the list.
Posted on December 19, 2005 at 7:13 AM •
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