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Information Technology News IBM loses sensitive employee tapes off back of truck
Information Technology News IBM loses sensitive employee tapes off back of truck | IBM loses sensitive employee tapes off back of truck |
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| Written by Stan Beer | |
| Wednesday, 16 May 2007 | |
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IBM has admitted that the data on at least some of the tapes lost was not encrypted. It is not clear how and why tapes containing unencrypted sensitive data came to be transported physically by a third party and it may open up the potential for legal action against the computer giant which has more than 350,000 employees. According to Alan Bell, Asia Pacific marketing director of security firm McAfee, many firms in addition to IBM have lost sensitive data because they have no control or knowledge of what information they have and how it moves throughout the organization. "In the case of IBM, data fell off the back of truck. There have been many other cases where data has literally fallen off the back of a truck," said Bell. "IBM has now joined the ranks of (US retail group) TJX which lost the details of 47.5 million customer credit cards. That company now faces multiple class action suits as well as legal action from a number of banks which may cost it tens of millions of dollars." When asked if using a third party to physically transport and then subsequently losing unencrypted sensitive data concerning employees could have legal ramifications for IBM, Bell declined to comment. However, he said: "Having access to sensitive data does not mean you own it and it doesn't mean you have the right to move it. A company has an obligation to protect confidential information about employees because it could cost them money if it's lost. Encrypting that information is one technique that can be used.{moscomment}
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