Majority of IT professionals experience regular phishing attacks

A new study based on a survey of IT professionals measured the rate that experienced staff have been victims of phishing emails, revealing that close to 70 per cent see a phishing email at least once a  week.

International research practice Ipsos Observer carried out the study, seeking answers from 205 IT staff throughout the US.

The report further highlighted trends regarding attempts to steal data in enterprise network attacks.

From those who took part in the survey, 67 per cent said that the most likely target in a network breach would be customer data. Hackers also aim for company financial data, with 63 per cent of those surveyed highlighting it as a likely target.

Jennifer Ellard from HPTippingPoint said that in order to combat data theft and malware infections from phishing, there needs to be a layered security strategy, including security awareness training.

Cyber criminals targeting enterprises, however, often take an approach called spear phishing, combing through freely available information online found on social media sites, which enables them to personalise emails.

Ellard said that such attacks are effective 90 per cent of the time.

Security awareness is an area that is only going to require more attention as technology develops, with more avenues opening up for hackers to access customer and company data. Firms are likely to respond by posting cyber security vacancies and taking on personnel already trained in recognising and thwarting security threats.