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fines that can be faced as a result of a
breach.”
Adam Gibbons,
Group Managing
Director,
Xeretec
:
“I think it’s a mix of
both. Minimising risk – especially from
data breaches – is now a board-level
concern. To what extent it filters down
into proactive measures to protect against
data breaches, is more difficult to establish.
To answer the question ‘do companies
still need to do more’, the truth is that as
security is a dynamic risk and one that’s
constantly evolving, companies always
need to do more simply because the risk
will not go away. There is no magic bullet
to end all security risks and it’s a job that
requires constant attention because cyber
criminals are relentless in their efforts
to capture confidential and valuable
information.”
Toni Gibiino,
Marketing Director,
RDT Office Solutions
:
“That statistic
encapsulates just how common place data
breaches have become in business today.
Depending on the size of business you’re
talking to, there are numerous takes on
how high up the agenda it is. Yes, every
CEO, MD, owner and business stakeholder
has an eye on the security of their business
from a confidentially perspective, but
our own findings show that SMEs tend
to keep the investment costs down by
implementing more process and password
based security tactics.
“It’s at the opposite end of the
spectrum with the large/enterprise
organisations, where the major investments
tend to occur. Most business in this area
have varying packages of security built into
their systems already, don’t forget, but the
subject matter is always on the agenda
due to the ever changing risks in today’s
world. The bigger the company, the greater
the exposure and risk of compromise.”
PITR: The print infrastructure is often
overlooked by IT professionals and
Simon Riley:
“I remember talking to
clients back in the early 2000s when Sharp
launched its data security kit. We told
clients about the risk of data being stored
on hard drives, and how it can easily be
removed via simple bits of free download
software. Many of the IT people at the
time turned their nose up and said it’s not
important.
“These were financial, banking and
government institutes in the city, and I was
amazed at the cavalier attitude of some
of the people I was talking to. The fact
that any copy, print or scanned image will
remain as a latent image on the hard drive
was something people were not aware of.
Even when we proved this was the case
in demonstrations, it still wasn’t enough
to persuade people to buy the extra bit of
protection.
“We sell machines week in and week
out here and upgrade our own and other
suppliers’ machines. There are very few
people who ask what happens to the hard
drives once machines leave the building,
we could really scan those drives and
remove any latent data from them.”
Julian Stafford:
“You would not run a
laptop computer or desktop computer,
without anti-virus software. In this day
and age, even the smallest multifunctional
printer has a keyboard or keypad, a screen,
a hard drive and, it sits on the company
network – essentially they are computers.
“MFPs, including the most basic
machines, are all vulnerable to attack.
They are an easy port of access for cyber
criminals to enter a business, no matter
what traditional security they have on the
IT network.”
Scott Walker:
“Believe it or not, this
is an actual example of how vulnerable
networks are, without the proper security
protocols in place on print devices.
A University in the USA was actually
breached by someone hacking in to the
print device. They changed the temperature
of the fuser unit which set the machine
on fire. Thankfully, it didn’t do too much
damage…but what if?”
Matt Goodall:
“Businesses need to fully
evaluate the impact of progress related to
their multifunctional devices. For example,
have they restricted access to the machine
via a USB stick (leaving them open to
internal data theft) or have they locked
down access to scan locations?
“In addition, software solutions such
continued...
PITR:
The print infrastructure is often overlooked by IT
professionals and networked devices are frequently
used without proper safeguards in place. What are the
risks of an unsecured print infrastructure?
Steve Small,
Managing Director,
DMS Reprographics
“Data encryption and data overwrite is vital,
especially when the device is at end of life”
The penalty
for specific
breaches
is four per
cent of an
organisation’s
revenue or
£20 million,
whatever is
the greater
