IT budget constrains stymie data loss prevention: WatchGuard

Forty four per cent of IT security managers who participated in WatchGuard Technologies survey said that they do not have the budget to stop data loss prevention.

The inaugural survey, which was conducted with 110 respondents during the AusCERT security conference earlier this month, also found that one in five security managers felt powerless to catch individuals stealing data or hacking information from corporate networks.

Fifty four per cent of those overseeing IT security admitted frustration with the lack of budget while 42 per cent did not believe that security was high enough on their company’s agenda.

The unsafe practices of employees accessing social networking sites and downloading content were a bugbear for 29 per cent of security managers.

Over a quarter of organisations (27 per cent) felt the process of protecting against data loss was too complicated, according to participants, and only 24 per cent of companies were investing in security.

The results also revealed that 88 per cent of organisations were under more pressure this year than 2010 to protect against data loss, while 52 per cent of respondents cited compliance with regulation and legislation driving their IT budget over the next 12 months. “Sensitive information enters and exits company networks every day, and getting caught losing that confidential information is expensive, disruptive, and damaging to carefully nurtured corporate images,” said WatchGuard A/NZ regional director, Scott Robertson, in a statement.

“The survey appears to suggest that whether data loss is accidental or malicious, IT teams need to gain insight into the magnitude of a potential data loss problem, identify security gaps, and develop a proactive approach to stop data loss before it happens,” he said.

The gap between the requirements of security managers and C-level executives was also highlighted in a previous survey conducted by the vendor in April 2011.

Got a security tip-off? Contact Hamish Barwick at hamish_barwick at idg.com.au

Follow Hamish Barwick on Twitter: @HamishBarwick

Follow Computerworld Australia on Twitter: @ComputerworldAU

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