Sophos develops IT Security Dos and Don'ts toolset

Johannesburg, 17 Apr 2012

According to a new survey conducted by Sophos on employee usage behaviour, a staggering 96% of respondents (IT professionals) do not trust their end-users to make sound IT security decisions.

The survey results highlight the need to educate employees on IT security issues and best practices. In line with this requirement, Sophos has developed a free IT Security DOs and DON'Ts training tool for IT professionals.

In the survey, Sophos asked IT professionals from around the globe several questions about employee IT usage behaviour. Additional highlights include:

* 48% of respondents fix security issues caused by end-user negligence at least once a week
* 26% of respondents say senior management commits the worst IT security offences
* 19% of respondents say IT commits the worst IT security offences

These results underscore the impact that a lack of understanding of security policies and best practices - in every department and at all levels of an organisation - can have on an IT infrastructure.

In its ongoing commitment to aid IT departments in educating employees, Sophos' programme aims to assist IT professionals in teaching their colleagues about security. The IT Security DOs and DON'Ts kit includes materials such as:

* A launch guide with quick tips for IT professionals to begin an educational programme
* IT Security DOs and DON'Ts posters and a handbook for end-users with top 10 tips
* Bite-sized reminder e-mail templates
* A password DOs and DON'Ts one-pager to help end-users create strong passwords
* A PowerPoint presentation for IT professionals to use for training

“Sophos has transformed its security expertise into a range of educational tools that will both inform and entertain,” adds Brett Myroff, CEO of Sophos distributor, NetXactics.

For additional information on the programme, please visit www.sophos.com/staysafe.

Sophos

More than 100 million users in 150 countries rely on Sophos as the best protection against complex threats and data loss. Sophos is committed to providing security and data protection solutions that are simple to manage, deploy and use, and that deliver the industry's lowest total cost of ownership. Sophos offers award-winning encryption, endpoint security, Web, e-mail, mobile and network security solutions backed by SophosLabs - a global network of threat intelligence centres. With more than two decades' of experience, Sophos is regarded as a leader in security and data protection by top analyst firms and has received many industry awards.

Sophos is headquartered in Boston, US, and Oxford, UK. More information is available at www.sophos.com.

NetXactics

Established in 1998, NetXactics is a South African company that specialises in sales, marketing and distribution of IT and related products. Its approach is quite unique, focusing on long-term growth coupled with exceptional customer stability. NetXactics has also been nominated as one of the top ICT companies in South Africa for four years running, and has attained a level 2 B-BBEE rating.

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