In today’s technological world of multi-national corporations and global trading entities, we are constantly faced with the ever-present threat of corporate espionage, which includes data theft, manipulation and destruction.

Sadly, many organizations are lax in appropriate data policies, which has made it remarkably easy for malicious hackers to both damage and destroy their intellectual property that remains in the digital world.

With our increasing dependence on a connected world, it is becoming easier for thieves to maliciously access data systems. This can cost millions of dollars and it is something that every organization that conducts business in the 21st century needs to be informed and aware of.

Corporate data theft is perhaps the most dangerous form of theft, as it not only exposes corporate secrets but also it may also expose credit card information and sensitive details pertaining to customers and business partners. However, there remains little in the way of legislation to enforce adequate security when it comes to protecting information about third parties.

Legislation extends to ensuring that data is kept in a safe and secure location and that data holders have appropriate polices to ensure that in the event of a security breach, data subjects are informed.
However, in the events of attack, responsibility and culpability for theft remains a grey issue and whilst at the moment, on many occasions this will mean that data holders are not held liable this could soon change as national security policies evolve.

Protecting against corporate espionage is not expensive, nor is it time consuming. By simply focusing on more security-minded principles such as transparent encryption of all sensitive data including backups, corporations can greatly reduce the value of stolen data and thus eliminate any risk of culpability that may arise in the event of an attack.

For true peace of mind, corporations should consider adopting cryptographic technologies such as Gold Lock Enterprise, a fully managed enterprise level encryption package which not only secures VOIP communications but also text chats and file transfer.