Security Slideshow: Social Media, Cloud Create Information Security Challenges

Strategy shortfall

Only 51% of the organizations surveyed have a documented information security strategy.

Security gap

Only 12% of respondents are presenting information security topics at each board meeting and less than half (49%) say their information security function is meeting the needs of the organization.

Cloud challenges

48% of respondents listed the implementation of cloud computing as a difficult or very difficult challenge, and more than half have not implemented any controls to mitigate the risks associated with cloud computing.

Misguided trust

The most frequently taken measure with cloud security is stronger oversight of the contract management process with cloud providers, but only by 20% of respondents even do this.

Mobile challenges

The adoption of tablets and smartphones ranked second on the list of most significant technology challenges, with more than half of respondents listing it as a difficult or very difficult challenge. Despite that, a majority (80%) of the organizations are either planning, evaluating or using tablet computers.

Budget increases

59% of respondents plan to increase their information security budgets in the coming 12 months.

Low encryption rate

The adoption of security techniques and software is still low, the report says. For example, fewer than 47% of the organizations use encryption techniques.

External attacks

72% of the organizations say external malicious attacks are their top risk.

Social challenges

Nearly 40% of the respondents rate social media-related risks issues as challenging.

Social media blockades

More than half of the organizations (53%) have responded to risks posed by social media by blocking access to sites.