Consumers, Businesses Have Big Role in Protecting Personal and Financial Information
2010 Verizon Data Breach Study a Strong Reminder: Protecting Sensitive Data Requires Ongoing Diligence
PR Newswire -- July 28, 2010
NEW YORK,July 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Hacking into the IT systems of banks and retail businesses has become a major activity for organized crime, putting consumers' money and personal information at increasingly greater risk.
Verizon's just-released 2010 Data Breach Investigations Report, based on a first-of-its-kind collaboration with the U.S. Secret Service, details steps that can be and are being taken by companies to safeguard their customers' financial data and personal information. However, consumers also need to play a more active role in this process. They can do so by following some simple, precautionary steps.
Cybercrime and corporate data breaches are being honed by growing numbers of organized criminals around the globe, as detailed in Verizon's data breach reports, which looked at more than 900 corporate data breaches involving more than 900 million compromised records. Perhaps the most vulnerable are the records of customers of financial institutions, retailers and hospitality businesses, which is where the majority of data breaches occurred, according to the report.
"Some consumers may feel they're powerless to protect themselves from data thefts involving large corporations," said Wade Baker, a Verizon security expert and the principal author of the report. "But there are any number of common-sense approaches that everyone can and should be taking to protect their identity and financial information."
Verizon, which provides high-level guidance and security services to help corporations around the world protect their corporate assets, also provides consumers with services to help protect them from cybercrime.
The steps recommended by Baker for consumers to help protect themselves include:
2010 Verizon Data Breach Study a Strong Reminder: Protecting Sensitive Data Requires Ongoing Diligence
PR Newswire -- July 28, 2010
NEW YORK,July 28 /PRNewswire/ -- Hacking into the IT systems of banks and retail businesses has become a major activity for organized crime, putting consumers' money and personal information at increasingly greater risk.
Verizon's just-released 2010 Data Breach Investigations Report, based on a first-of-its-kind collaboration with the U.S. Secret Service, details steps that can be and are being taken by companies to safeguard their customers' financial data and personal information. However, consumers also need to play a more active role in this process. They can do so by following some simple, precautionary steps.
Cybercrime and corporate data breaches are being honed by growing numbers of organized criminals around the globe, as detailed in Verizon's data breach reports, which looked at more than 900 corporate data breaches involving more than 900 million compromised records. Perhaps the most vulnerable are the records of customers of financial institutions, retailers and hospitality businesses, which is where the majority of data breaches occurred, according to the report.
"Some consumers may feel they're powerless to protect themselves from data thefts involving large corporations," said Wade Baker, a Verizon security expert and the principal author of the report. "But there are any number of common-sense approaches that everyone can and should be taking to protect their identity and financial information."
Verizon, which provides high-level guidance and security services to help corporations around the world protect their corporate assets, also provides consumers with services to help protect them from cybercrime.
The steps recommended by Baker for consumers to help protect themselves include:
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