Privacy and information management research firm Ponemon Institute, together with PGP Corporation, a global leader in trusted data protection, today announced the results of the first-ever global study into the costs incurred by organisations after experiencing a data breach. The 2009 Annual Study: Global Cost of a Data Breach report, compiled by The Ponemon Institute…
Category: Commentaries and Analyses
UK: NHS responsible for third of data breaches
Jennifer Scott reports: The deputy commissioner of the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO) has named and shamed the NHS as the worst offender when it comes to data breaches. During the opening keynote at InfoSecurity Europe 2010, David Smith highlighted the health service’s blunders over the past two years where it accounted for almost a third…
Survey: Delayed Compliance with New Regulations Has Increased Data Breaches and Medical Identity Theft in U.S. Hospitals
Although some will tend to minimize survey results when the surveyor has a self-serving interest, the results of the recent Identity Force survey of over 200 hospital administrators provides unsurprising, yet troubling, data. From their press release about the survey: PROBLEMS ARE WORSENING DESPITE MAJOR REGULATORY EFFORTS 41.5% of hospitals have TEN OR MORE data…
AU: Anti-ID theft computer system flops
Mark Davis reports: A $28 million Howard government plan to create a high-tech system to address identity crime has been plagued by technical difficulties and failed to achieve its aims, the Australian National Audit Office says. The National Document Verification Service, announced by the Coalition in 2006, is a computer network which is supposed to…
Criminal web forum trades in stolen social network profiles
A study from VeriSign’s cyber security watchdog iDefense has revealed a huge increase over the past year in demand for nicked social network user accounts, many of which go on to be sold internationally on the black market including over forums. Once information available on social networking is secured it is auctioned off in bulk…
Minn. audit: State was lax on data security issues
A report from Minnesota’s legislative auditor says state officials didn’t do enough to safeguard data in a system used to verify the citizenship of new employees. The state stopped using Texas-based Lookout Services Inc. last December after private data like employee birth dates and Social Security numbers were too easily accessed on the company’s website….