Unprotected Mobile Phones Used to Store Confidential Information

According to the findings of a survey by endpoint data protection security vendor, Credant Technologies, 80% of phone users store information on their phones that could easily be used to steal their identities. The research surveyed 600 commuters at London railway stations about their mobile phones, typical usage and the types of sensitive information stored on them.

The results found that 16% have their bank account details saved on their mobile phones, while 24% their pin numbers and passwords. Ten percent store credit card information on their phone, while 40% fail to protect their devices with a password.

Further investigation reveals the information stored is not restricted to personal details as most users also use their personal devices for business use:

• 99% of people use their phones for some sort of business use - even though 26% have been instructed by their employer not to do so
• 35% receive and send business emails
• 77% keep business names and addresses
• 30% use them as a business diary
• 17% download corporate information, such as documents and spreadsheets
• 23% store customers information

According to Paul Huntingdon - Public Sector Director at Credant Technologies and adviser to many Government departments and large corporations, "People are ignorant to how easy a professional thief could take over their life and effectively destroy it. It is therefore imperative that all mobile phone users, even with the most basic handset, password protect and encrypt them."

Steve Gold, Telecoms journalist and IT expert adds "People can be destroyed when their phone gets into the wrong hands - for example blackmail, abuse and threats, just by leaving it accessible without password protection. Imagine how easy it would be to assume or destroy the life of a colleague just by stealing their phone - if it was the company chairman's phone you could send emails from him announcing his resignation - a practical joke with serious consequences."

Posted to the site on 18th March 2009