More than half of people take company information with them when
they leave an employer, the US-based Ponemon Institute has
found.
The institute interviewed nearly 1,000 Americans who had been
laid-off, fired, or changed jobs within the last year.
They said they took the information to help them in getting
another job, to help start their own business, or revenge.
The data included proprietary information such as customer data,
employee information, financial reports, software tools and
confidential business documents.
Only 15% of employers checked what documents and files staff
took with them when they left.
Eugene Schultz, a researcher with the Sans Institute, said the
study did not show how badly employee's can behave when a company
folds.
"I have heard numerous accounts about computer crimes (including
brazen thefts of servers) by ex-employees that ostensibly occurred
after High Tower Software collapsed," he said. Despite many reports
of such illegal activity, no complaints were filed with police.
