More than a third of IT directors think they could lose
their jobs if sensitive information seeps out through
email.
Despite their fears, an overwhelming 93% of businesses use email
as their main communications medium, without sufficiently beefing
up its security features.
“Businesses wouldn’t dream of sending confidential information
on a postcard, yet that is effectively what they do whenever they
use traditional email delivery systems,” says Brian Raven, chairman
at Safe-Post, which commissioned the research from Vanson
Bourne.
“With so many IT managers potentially in the firing line, it’s
only a matter of time before an IT manager is made a scapegoat for
the leaking of confidential information.”
This heavy reliance on email is not backed by sufficient
security procedures, warns Raven. The lack of authentication in
most email systems makes them prime targets for malicious attacks
from hackers and spammers.
Almost a third of the 100 IT directors in the survey say their
businesses suffers email loss or delay at least fortnightly.