The Hillary Clinton effect: the majority of uk workers risk data security

The majority of British workers are putting confidential professional documents and data at risk, according to new research.

A survey of 2,000 UK workers commissioned by IT provider, Probrand.co.uk revealed that employee attitudes to confidentiality and cyber security are worryingly relaxed, with 74% of workers admitting to using personal technology to freely access work documents.

Half (52%) of UK workers access their work emails on an unsecure personal device such as a mobile phone or laptop, meaning many are running the risk of leaking confidential business communications.

Laissez-faire attitudes towards digital security also mean that more than a third (35%) of workers have professional documents stored on gadgets which are not password protected.

The news comes in the wake of Hillary Clinton being labelled ‘extremely careless’ for using personal technology and unsecure servers for state related business, showing this type of behaviour is widespread.

Those working in the financial services industry (81%) were revealed as the worst offending employees, putting sensitive client information at risk by using personal gadgets for professional communication, followed by legal industry workers (79%) and those in the education sector (76%).

Matt Royle, Marketing Director at Probrand, said: “Cyber security and the safety of customer personal data should not be taken lightly.

“Relaxed attitudes to security and the trend for mobile working, which often sees sensitive, business-critical data reviewed on personal mobile devices, can present a risk to data being ‘leaked’ or accessed by others. This is especially the case if the device is connected to an unsecure wireless network.

“Workers must be mindful and act to protect data at all costs, before putting their business or others’ information at risk.

“New legislation coming into place next year will mean there are even larger fines for companies not abiding by General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), with stricter policies on the processing and handling of data and documents.

“The message is, get your security in order and equip your business for greater data protection and health.”

Probrand is the UK’s first online marketplace for business IT, providing IT Products, managed IT Services and IT Solutions. Find out more at www.Probrand.co.uk.