Copy Machines: A Wake-up Call for Security June 24, 2010 By Katie Weaver, Awareity

On April 19, CBS News featured a report revealing that nearly every copy machine stores documents copied, scanned and e-mailed by the machines on their hard drives. The report found sensitive and personal information on copy machines ready to be resold.

In response, the FTC is now contacting copy machine manufacturers, resellers and office-supply stores regarding privacy concerns over the thousands of images that are potentially stored on the machines’ hard drives. The FTC is trying to “determine whether they are warning their customers about these risks and whether manufacturers and resellers are providing options for secure copying.”

This is a great example of how security risks and threats are constantly changing and how critical it is to ensure your employees, managers, staff, contractors, third-parties, etc. are aware of existing, new and updated risks.

How are organizations addressing security awareness today?

Many organizations implement once-a-year general training that provides users with a general overview of topics like phishing, pharming, password security, etc. But, as this report illustrates, general training is NOT enough. Organizations must provide ongoing awareness training to their employees and ensure all personnel (third-parties, vendors, contractors, volunteers, etc.) have acknowledged the updates and understand their individual roles and responsibilities for protecting information.

This report on copiers was released in April; what if Employee A did not take his awareness training until next January? This employee’s lack of awareness and accountability for 8 months prior could create embarrassing and expensive consequences for your organization.

Curious how your organizations are addressing ongoing awareness training requirements?

About Awareity

Awareity is a privately held organization founded in 2002. Awareity's innovative e-Management solutions empower organizations to 'connect the dots' and offer a unique focus on implementing lessons learned across several critical areas of business – compliance, information assurance, public safety, emergency management, enterprise risk management and reputation management.

Awareity’s solutions are helping organizations across multiple industries - education, financial, government, healthcare and other critical industries – to achieve better results by ensuring lessons learned become lessons implemented and the right information is shared with the right people in the right place at the right time with accountability and auditability at the individual-level. Awareity's solutions simplify complex challenges, reduce current and ongoing costs and improve efficiencies as obligations continue to mount and budgets and resources are limited.

Better Knowledge. Better Decisions. Better Results.

www.awareity.com