***Editor's Note: If you're interested in the secure B2B identity architecture of tomorrow , make sure you sign up for the Federation and User Centric Identity webinar today!

Stories of yet another IT security lapse by company X are hitting the headlines far too often, each time raising the alarm about how little is being done to protect commercially sensitive data on mobile devices and the hidden costs associated with this negligence. Some recent victims of laptop security breaches include organizations in the retail, banking, public sector and local government markets. One local council had an employee laptop, containing the personal details of staff and former personnel, stolen during a street robbery. The council subsequently notified all affected staff and set up a hotline offering advice on how to protect themselves from potential identify theft.

Security breaches resulting from lost or stolen laptops can result in serious penalties, including heavy fines or permanent bans from obtaining and holding customer details in the future. This demonstrates the severity of such laxity in the eyes of regulatory bodies. Ineffective security policy enforcement can have a detrimental impact not only on the organisation but also on public confidence in personal data protection and the individuals' rights to privacy.

The threat of laptop breaches is even greater considering the startling number of management executives that are still unaware of the responsibility they have towards the protection of information. In a rapidly changing, competitive, IT-driven environment, these executives have a growing cause to begin addressing security as a critical business issue on their agenda.

One specific security issue that executives should be taking more seriously is laptop screen privacy and the omnipresent shoulder surfing threat. Today 65 per cent of UK businesses do not offer a comprehensive security policy that combats the issues of shoulder surfing. Key executives appear worryingly content to review confidential sales and personnel records on a laptop in a public place, leaving them at the mercy of complete strangers in the next seat or the row behind.

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