The fourth annual Computer Technology Industry Association
(CompTIA) study reveals that reliance on technology alone will not
stamp out computer crime. In fact people are the biggest security
threat causing nearly 3 in 5 of incidents and the situation has
significantly worsened from last year, when people were responsible
for 47% of breaches.
“As we get better from a technology standpoint, many organisations
seem to believe that solutions alone are sufficient to turn back
all attacks, and a level of complacency may be setting in,” says
Brian McCarthy, chief operating officer at CompTIA.
Despite the bulging armoury of anti-virus, intrusion detection
systems, disaster recovery plans and other security measures, most
firms tend to overlook staff training. Just 29% of the 574
companies surveyed have compulsory staff security training and only
36% implement security awareness training.
Roughly 4 in 10 of the firms have suffered attacks in the last
year. Worms and viruses are the chief security critters, but poor
user awareness and remote access are also big causes of problems.