Analyst corner: security and compliance

In Analyst Corner we round up the latest papers from the research firms that cover the IT industry. This week, we focus on security and compliance.

Gartner: spending on risk compliance software up

Organisations are spending more on software to support corporate governance, risk management and compliance, according to Gartner. By 2008, more than 75% of large and mid-size firms will use compliance management, monitoring and automation systems, it said. The number of regulations affecting IT operations is set to double by 2012.

Infosecurity: quarter fail to enforce wireless policy

More than one in four organisations do not enforce a wireless security policy, a survey of 320 firms by Infosecurity Europe has found. "Most businesses do not scan their perimeters regularly. If you have a no-wireless policy, scanning is essential to ensure it stays that way," said ISSA president Phil Cracknell.

Forrester: CSOs need to develop business focus

"Upcoming European regulations will involve a shift in the chief security officer's role, from someone in a technical position of managing technological solutions to a business position of managing risk," said Thomas Raschke, senior analyst at Forrester Research.

Hitachi Data Systems: firms reluctant to encrypt

UK firms rank classifying the data they keep for corporate governance as a priority, but they seem less keen on deleting or protecting that information, according to a survey of 950 IT decision makers by Hitachi Data Systems. Although 80% of UK companies have employed data classification techniques, only 38% encrypt the data under their protection.