Identity Theft: Unmonitored Data May Be Online and Susceptible to Theft—Identity Theft Expert and Speaker on Personal Security
(BOSTON, Mass. – June 1, 2007 – IDTheftSecurity.com) Research has suggested that industry has not done enough to secure sensitive data that resides on enterprise networks. According to Robert Siciliano, a widely televised and quoted personal security and identity theft expert, this and other news again raises question regarding how to protect unknown quantities of computerized information in an age of everyday online search.
“Identity thieves continue to have a vast treasure trove of data at their disposal,” said Siciliano. “We need a concerted effort to ferret out and secure the untold amounts of unsecured data that otherwise threaten to become thieves’ bounty after the next massive data breach.”
CEO of IDTheftSecurity.com and a member of the Bank Fraud & IT Security Report’s editorial board, Siciliano leads Fortune 500 companies and their clients in workshops that explore consumer education solutions for security issues. A longtime identity theft speaker and author of “The Safety Minute: 01,” he has discussed data security and consumer protection on CNBC, on NBC’s “Today Show,” FOX News, and elsewhere.
Research suggests that confidential information remains largely unprotected online at most organizations. A report by Enterprise Strategy Group and based on a survey of 227 Information Security professionals at North American public and private organizations has found one-fourth of respondents rating their organizations as “fair” or “poor” with regards to procedures and policies for confidential data.
On May 29, Computer Technology Review (CTR) reported that unmonitored and, perhaps, undocumented records in the form of Word and Excel or with file extensions such as .PST and .PDF comprise about 70 percent to 80 percent of organizations’ data.
Much of this data-at-rest, according to the article in CTR, resides on individual computers’ hard drives, susceptible to theft. Sometimes this data is posted online, and, in a tangentially related development, according to an April 30 article in The Money Times, multiple state governments have made moves to make documents previously unsearchable available to Google users.
“We are dancing on a fine line,” said Siciliano. “The needs of the Freedom of Information Act must be facilitated, but the need to protect information unsuitable, from a security standpoint, for online search is also a priority.”
Readers may view a CNBC video clip, which features Siciliano discussing the perils of data security, here:
###
About IDTheftSecurity.com
Identity theft affects us all. Robert Siciliano, CEO of IDTheftSecurity.com and member of the Bank Fraud & IT Security Report’s editorial board, makes it his mission to provide consumer education solutions on identity theft to Fortune 500 companies and their clients.
A leader of personal safety and security seminars nationwide, Siciliano has been featured on CNN, MSNBC, CNBC, “FOX News,” NBC’s “Today Show,” “The Suze Orman Show,” “The Montel Williams Show,” “Maury Povich,” “Sally Jesse Raphael,” “The Howard Stern Show,” and “Inside Edition.” The Privacy Learning Institute features him on its Website. Numerous magazines, print news outlets, and wire services have turned to him, as well, for expert commentary on personal security and identity theft. These include Entrepreneur, Woman’s Day, Mademoiselle, Good Housekeeping, The New York Times, Los Angeles Times, Washington Times, The Washington Post, Chicago Tribune, United Press International, Reuters, and others.
Visit Siciliano’s Web site, www.IDTheftSecurity.com; blog, www.realtysecurity.com/blog; and YouTube page, http://youtube.com/stungundotcom.
The media are encouraged to get in touch with Siciliano directly:
Robert Siciliano
Personal Security Expert
PHONE: 888-SICILIANO (742-4542)
FAX: 877-2-FAX-NOW (232-9669)
Robert@IDTheftSecurity.com
www.idtheftsecurity.com
The media may also contact:
Brent W. Skinner, President
STETrevisions
PHONE: 617-875-4859
FAX: 866-663-6557
BrentSkinner@STETrevisions.biz
