A new survey reports that the majority of IT staff (IT teams) felt pressure to ignore security in favor of business activities.
The COVID-19 pandemic has caused enormous economic damage, and as the virus continues to sweep across the globe, many businesses have faced serious challenges. In order to keep operations going – or facilitate the changes needed to survive – employers have turned to virtual meetings and remote working.
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While working from home may once have seemed like just a temporary measure, remote and hybrid working is now entrenched in some sectors – and there could be serious implications for cybersecurity.
On Thursday, HP Wolf Security released a new study, the Security Rebellions & Rejections report, conducted with IT decision makers.
Overall, 91% of respondents said they felt “pressured” to compromise security due to the need to continue business operations during the COVID-19. 76% of respondents said security was forced to take a back seat, and furthermore, 83% believe that working from home has created a “time bomb” for corporate security incidents.
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IT teams and their workloads aren't the only issues – there also seems to be general feelings of apathy and frustration when it comes to managing cybersecurity in a remote workplace.
According to the survey, younger workers, in particular, are more likely to bypass existing security controls to manage their workload, with 48% of this group saying that security tools, such as website restrictions or VPN requirements, are a barrier – and 31% have at least tried to bypass them.
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Overall, 48% of office workers said security measures were a waste of time, and 54% of those aged 18-24 were more concerned about meeting deadlines than potential security breaches. Additionally, 39% of this group were unsure or unaware of their employer’s security policies.
Information source: zdnet.com
