Survey finds 75% lose trust in data-loss firms

Security breaches seriously undermining public respect.

A survey carried out jointly by security company Check Point and research firm YouGov has found public reaction to data security breaches is overwhelmingly negative.

75% of respondents to the survey said they would not trust a firm that had suffered a data theft or leakage, while 79% would warn friends to avoid such businesses and 91% said they themselves would not do business with them if an alternative was available.

The study comes after several high-profile data leaks, including a major haul of data taken from the TJX chain of discount stores, leaks from several British government departments, and recent intrusions into networks at top-secret US laboratories.

'With more and more sensitive data being held by more and more firms and organisations, we are more vulnerable to fraud and identity theft than ever before,' said John Hawes, technical consultant at Virus Bulletin. 'It's good to see people are becoming more aware of the dangers, and perhaps news like this will put pressure on those who store and transfer data in sloppy and careless ways to up their game and start using sensible security measures, ensuring their networks are well protected and any data leaving them is well encrypted.'

13 December 2007

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