Chief information security officers (CISOs) and human resources
managers need to be on their toes as
turmoil in financial services markets threatens to spill over
into the real economy, says an internet security expert.
Eugene Kaspersky, co-founder and CEO of Kaspersky Laboratories,
a Moscow-based internet security firm, said worldwide plummeting
stock prices, forced mergers and acquisitions, and the threat of a
recession "could prompt abnormal behaviour among staff".
Speaking to Computer Weekly about the effects of the credit
crunch on IT security, Kaspersky said it raised the risk that some
might be tempted to act abnormally.
He said data leakage prevention, such as stopping insiders from
taking company information without permission, was a fast-growing
area. He pointed to incidents over the past year, such as the
loss of the personal details of 25 million child beneficiaries by
HM Revenu & Customs, that had raised awareness of the
problem.
He said people now faced the loss of their jobs and homes. They
might be tempted either to take revenge on their employers by
destroying or compromising company information, or to use it to
improve their circumstances. "Either way, CISOs face an increased
risk to company data," he said. "They should be getting together
with HR managers to agree policies that reduce that risk."
Kaspersky said the present round of mergers and acquisitions
also presented security risks. "Until the new systems are bedded
in, there will be gaps," he said.