Cyber Secuity Risks Ignored

Revealing article from thecsuite.co.uk

Blue Coat Systems have revealed the results of a global research study of 1580 respondents across 11 countries that highlighted a global trend of employees ignoring cyber risks while at work. Some highlights:

• In the UK one-third (33 percent) of respondents used new applications without IT’s permission
• Nearly two out of five employees (41 percent) use social media sites for personal reasons at work – a serious risk to businesses, as cyber criminals hide malware on shortened links and exploit encrypted traffic to deliver payloads.
• The majority of global survey participants admitted understanding the obvious cyber threats when downloading email attachments from an unknown sender, or using social media and unapproved apps from corporate networks without permission, but knowing this, did not curb their risk-taking.
• Whilst globally, six percent of respondents still admitted viewing adult content on work devices, the UK ranked higher with nearly one in ten (nine percent) employees admitting to viewing adult content at work.
• Pornography continues to be one of the most popular methods of hiding malware or malicious content. Even though awareness is high of the threat posed by adult content sites, workers are still visiting these potentially dangerous sites.

 Most of these risks can be mitigated with the right technology, staff training and operational policies. What’s on your priority? Cybersecurity is a growing threat and whilst it may not be the most existing subject. It is an important one.