Skip Links

Network World

  • Social Web 
  • Email 
  • Close

Trusted users pose significant security threats, survey finds

RSA survey data reveals innocent insiders create data exposures of extraordinary scope
By Denise Dubie , Network World , 12/10/2007

It probably doesn't give security managers much comfort to hear that the majority of internal employees that pose a significant threat to network security are well-meaning, innocent offenders -- as opposed to those with malice on the mind.

But the results of a recent man-on-the-street survey of 126 people conducted by RSA in November and released Monday show that despite security managers best efforts, 35% of people polled said they need to work around their organization's security policies to get their job done. According to RSA, "These innocent insiders can unwittingly create data exposures of extraordinary scope and cost through their ordinary, everyday behavior, whether through carelessness, working around security measures or following inadequate security policies."


Slideshow: End users behaving badly


Specifically, some 63% of those surveyed said they frequently or sometimes send work documents to a personal e-mail account to more easily access the files from home. Others rely on remote access capabilities, such as VPNs or Web mail for 87% of people polled, to work from home.

Some mobile workers also put the company at risk when they access their work e-mail via a public wireless hotspot, for instance. According to RSA's survey, about 56% of respondents said they do just that and another 52% gain access via a public computer in an Internet café or at the airport. But RSA says often authentication beyond user name and password is needed to secure corporate data.

"Organizations must understand the types of information their employees and other insiders need to access, determine the sensitivity of that information and then protect it with security measures commensurate with the associated risk," said Sam Curry, vice president of product management and marketing at RSA, in a statement.

Close to two-thirds of respondents reported they frequently leave their workplace with a mobile device such as a laptop and 8% reported having lost such a device bearing corporate information -- leaving their organization susceptible to data loss.

Other innocent insiders simply trust their fellow human beings. In the survey, 34% reported having held a door open for someone they did not recognize. Forty percent reported being on the receiving end of such hospitality when they had forgotten their key card or access code. In addition, about 20% of the respondents who said their company provides wireless access (66%) said there are no security credentials required to gain access to the network.

Partner Content

Brilliantly simple security and control solutions for email, web and endpoint

www.sophos.com

Stopping data leakage

Learn how to exploit your current security investment to control the information that flows into, through and out of your network.

Download the white paper.

Why detection rates aren't enough

Evaluating endpoint security products is a time-consuming and daunting task. Learn the six critical questions you need to ask prospective vendors to get the right endpoint solution.

Download the white paper.

Applications: taking back control

Employees installing unauthorized applications is a growing threat to business security and productivity. Cost-effectively reduce this threat by integrating control into your malware protection.

Learn more today.

Comments (4)
Login
Forgot your account info?

Continuing the Conversation...By ccarriero on December 12, 2007, 9:51 pmIn a Non-Production environment (data cloned from production to a test environment), do you think the data should be scrambled in some fashion? How far should a...

Reply | Read entire comment

Oh Yeah?By Anonymous on December 12, 2007, 12:27 amI agree. That's why for years I have advocated FIRING those people who don't follow company policy. These are the people who feel they too busy or important...

Reply | Read entire comment

Work with, not against, usersBy Anonymous on December 11, 2007, 8:16 pmI'm a high tech worker but am not in IT. My angle on this is from a user's perspective rather than from IT. I have to say first off that I am one of the guilty...

Reply | Read entire comment

RE: Trusted users pose significant security threats, survey findsBy ccarriero on December 10, 2007, 8:39 pmGood article on explaining the problem, but as a company that provides software to deal with this very problem, we find the move to adopt practices and/or software...

Reply | Read entire comment

View all comments

Add comment
Anonymous comments subject to approval. Register here for member benefits.
Have a NetworkWorld account? Log in here. Register now for a free account.

Videos

rssRss Feed

Whitepapers

Magic Quadrant for Application Delivery Controllers

Gartner summarizes its view on Application Delivery Controllers, evaluates strengths and weaknesses...

Vulnerability Management For Dummies

Download this concise book "Vulnerability Management for Dummies," to learn about the simple steps...

The ROI and TCO Benefits of Data Deduplication for Data Protection in the Enterprise

This paper examines and quantifies the costs and benefits of backup with deduplication storage as...

Webcasts

Transforming the Enterprise WAN Edge: Video from Cisco

Life on the edge of your WAN has changed dramatically. With the need to deliver advanced services,...

PoE Plus: Impact on the PoE Market

The standard for Power over Ethernet (PoE), IEEE Std. 802.3af(tm)-2003, advanced networking,...

Harnessing the power of communications to increase workplace performance

Due to the convergence of IT and telecommunications technologies, the business workplace has been...

Special Reports

The Evolution of Network Security

We have so many holes punched in our firewalls today that many industry insiders question the value...

The self-managed network

We aren't there yet, but advances in network and systems management tools are making it possible to...

Get instant email notification when white papers, webcasts, executive guides are added to our library. Stay informed and up-to-date with the latest on IT Technologies with Network World's Resource Alerts.