Are your staff putting your business at risk?

Are your staff putting your business at risk?

Technology is part of our everyday life, at home and work we are exposed more than ever to systems, apps and accounts which require passwords.  In today’s modern world we are all used to creating and using passwords so it makes sense that your employees are pretty clued up when it comes to data in the workplace right?

Wrong!

A recent European poll conducted by ZDNet showed 14% of European employees would give out their company’s passwords for £200 or less, not realizing that it could cost the company millions.  Others who took part in the poll admitted to sharing passwords with colleagues on emails and via social media, writing them down and leaving them in a visible place such as stuck on their PC, using the same password for home and work, printing out passwords and leaving them in a “safe” place, saving passwords on shared computers and keeping a note of them on a mobile device.

The implications for all of this sloppy password management is probably unconsidered by most employees but for the business the consequences can be disastrous.

Hackers take advantage of bad password management by various means.  Hacking into an email account can give them access to any passwords that have been shared electronically, sharing passwords via social media also leaves companies open to hackers not to mention family and friends. If a mobile phone is lost with a company password stored in it suddenly your company’s internal workings could be exposed to whoever picks it up.

The recent changes in law around GDPR also mean a double whammy for companies if passwords are used to expose their customer/service user data meaning a hefty fine for anyone who has not complied with legislation.

If a security breach does occur it’s most likely to have come from an internal source and therefore a robust password management procedure is a must to any company.

We work regularly with businesses who are concerned about security breaches within their organisations.  We can advise you on the best way to keep your data secure and check for any vulnerabilities in your systems with a free, no obligation IT Audit.  You might be surprised what we find!

At Holistic IT, our specialist team of cyber security experts are here to help ensure that all our customers have the right systems and robust solutions in place to effectively manage and protect their data.

Get in touch with our team today on 01302 23 50 50 or email info@holistic.it for advice.