Business travellers at risk of cyber crime, says Kaspersky Lab

People with jobs that require travelling have been told that they are most likely to be targetted for access to corporate and private data than they are to be mugged, says a recent report.

The research, from software security group Kaspersky Lab, surveyed 11,850 people throughout Europe, the US, Asia-Pacific, Latin America and Russia. It discovered that the expectation that they will always be online is impairing the judgement of today’s business travellers.

The survey said that 59% of those in a senior role attempt to connect to the internet as soon as they arrive in another country because it is expected that they will be available to be reached online. The study further reveals that 47% believe that their bosses, if they instruct staff to go abroad, should accept the security risks that accompany their decision.

Kaspersky Lab’s Konstantin Voronkov said of the report that cyber crime is a danger when travelling and that employees are placing confidential business data at risk.

He said:

“The insight provided by the report should be a red flag for corporate information security specialists, as the business travel behaviour we have unearthed here presents a significant corporate data protection challenge. It’s now up to businesses to respond with appropriate security solutions, if they wish to protect themselves.”

This goes to show the importance of having at least one cyber security professional on board in today’s business. Promoting cyber security jobs to the growing talent pool available is therefore a wise move for businesses in all industries.