Check Point and Ponemon Survey Reveals 77% of Businesses Experienced Data Loss Last Year
June 08 2011 - 8:30AM
Marketwired
Check Point® Software Technologies Ltd. (NASDAQ: CHKP), the
worldwide leader in securing the Internet, and the Ponemon
Institute, a leading privacy and information management research
firm, today revealed that 77 percent of organizations surveyed have
experienced data loss in the last year. Key findings from the
report, "Understanding Security Complexity in 21st Century IT
Environments," show respondents cited customer information (52%) as
the most common type of information compromised -- in addition to
intellectual property (33%), employee information (31%) and
corporate plans (16%). With the adoption of Web 2.0 applications
and more mobile devices connecting to the network, organizations
are challenged with enforcing better data security and IT
Governance, Risk and Compliance (GRC) requirements.
According to the survey of over 2,400 IT security
administrators, the primary cause for data loss resulted from lost
or stolen equipment, followed by network attacks, insecure mobile
devices, Web 2.0 and file-sharing applications and accidentally
sending emails to the wrong recipient. In addition, approximately
49 percent of all respondents believe their employees have little
or no awareness about data security, compliance and policies --
encouraging business to integrate more user awareness into their
data protection strategies, as people are often the first line of
defense.
"We understand that data security and compliance are often at
the top of the CISO's list. However, if you look at the drivers for
data loss, the majority of incidents are unintentional," said Oded
Gonda, vice president of network security products at Check Point
Software Technologies. "In order to move data loss from detection
to prevention, businesses should consider integrating more user
awareness and establish the appropriate processes to gain more
visibility and control of information assets."
With Data Loss Prevention (DLP) as a top information security
challenge, it's important for businesses to understand the key
issues driving data loss and establish a set of security best
practices to prevent a breach, for example:
- Understand the Organization's Data Security
Needs - Have a clear view and record of the types of sensitive
data that exist within the organization, as well as which types of
data are subject to government or industry-related compliance
standards.
- Classify Sensitive Data - Begin by
creating a list of sensitive data types in the organization and
designating the level of sensitivity. Consider establishing a set
of document templates to classify data by Public, Restricted or
Highly Confidential -- creating more end user awareness about
corporate policies and what constitutes sensitive information.
- Align Security Policies with Business
Needs - An organization's security strategy should protect the
company's information assets, without inhibiting the end user.
Start by defining company policies in simple business terms that
are aligned with individual employee, group or organization's
business needs. Identity awareness solutions can provide companies
with more visibility of their users and IT environment, in order to
better enforce corporate policy.
- Secure Data Throughout Its Lifecycle -
Businesses should consider implementing data security solutions
that secure their sensitive data in multiple forms -- correlating
users, data types and processes -- and protect it throughout its
lifecycle: data-at-rest, data-in-motion, and data-in-use.
- Eliminate the Compliance Burden -
Evaluate government and industry-driven compliance mandates and how
they impact an organization's security and business flow. Consider
implementing solutions with best practice policies customized to
meet specific regulations, including HIPAA, PCI DSS and Sarbanes
Oxley, for fast prevention on day one. Best practice policies also
enable IT teams to focus on proactively protecting data beyond
what's required.
- Emphasize User Awareness and Engagement -
Involve the user in the security decision process. Technology can
help educate users about corporate policies and empower them to
remediate security incidents in real-time. Combining technology and
user awareness sensitizes employees to risky behavior through
self-learning techniques.
"With hundreds of data loss incidents every year -- both
reported and unreported -- it's no surprise the issues with
governance, risk and compliance are being magnified," said Dr.
Larry Ponemon, chairman and founder, Ponemon Institute. "Data
security in a modern day world means more than deploying a set of
technologies to overcome these challenges. In fact, the lack of
employee awareness is a primary cause in data loss incidents and is
encouraging more businesses to educate their users about corporate
policies in place."
The Check Point DLP Software Blade is based on the company's
Software Blade Architecture™. With a unique combination of
technology and user awareness, Check Point helps businesses
pre-emptively protect sensitive information from unintentional
loss. With its unique UserCheck™ technology, Check Point DLP goes
beyond technology to educate users on proper data handling policies
and empowering them to remediate incidents in real-time.
The survey, "Understanding Security Complexity in 21st Century
IT Environments," was independently conducted by the Ponemon
Institute in February 2011, surveying IT security administrators
located in the U.S., U.K. France, Germany and Japan. The survey
sample represents organizations of all sizes and across 14
different industries. For more information about Check Point DLP or
access to the full report, visit:
http://www.checkpoint.com/products/dlp-software-blade/index.html.
"At Check Point, we look at data loss prevention as a strategy,
not a science -- and we are committed to ensuring our customers
have the tools and protection needed to prevent and remediate
breaches, before they occur," concluded Gonda.
About the Ponemon Institute The Ponemon
Institute© is dedicated to advancing responsible information and
privacy management practices in business and government. To achieve
this objective, the Institute conducts independent research,
educates leaders from the private and public sectors and verifies
the privacy and data protection practices of organizations in a
variety of industries.
About Check Point Software Technologies
Ltd. Check Point Software Technologies Ltd.
(www.checkpoint.com), the worldwide leader in securing the
Internet, provides customers with uncompromised protection against
all types of threats, reduces security complexity and lowers total
cost of ownership. Check Point first pioneered the industry with
FireWall-1 and its patented stateful inspection technology. Today,
Check Point continues to develop new innovations based on the
Software Blade Architecture, providing customers with flexible and
simple solutions that can be fully customized to meet the exact
security needs of any organization. Check Point is the only vendor
to go beyond technology and define security as a business process.
Check Point 3D Security uniquely combines policy, people and
enforcement for greater protection of information assets and helps
organizations implement a blueprint for security that aligns with
business needs. Customers include tens of thousands of
organizations of all sizes, including all Fortune and Global 100
companies. Check Point's award-winning ZoneAlarm solutions protect
millions of consumers from hackers, spyware and identity theft.
©2011 Check Point Software Technologies Ltd. All rights
reserved
Media Contact Stephanie Look Check Point Software
Technologies +1 650.628.2171 press@us.checkpoint.com Investor
Contact Kip E. Meintzer Check Point Software Technologies +1
650.628.2040 ir@us.checkpoint.com
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