Survey Shows Lack of Policies for Confidential Papers Among Small Businesses

Date: 
Mon, 10/02/2017

Survey Shows Lack of Policies for Confidential Papers

Weak risk management could be making small businesses vulnerable to data theft according to an independent market reserarch firm.  The company just released its results of its survey finding that 39 percent of American small business owners lack any type of company policy for managing their confidential paper.  In addition, 32 percent of SBOs think that a loss or theft of documentation would not adversely affect their organization, while 31 percent feel that a data breach of client information or proprietarty data would have a significant impact on their business, yet only half of the recipients surveyed shred all documents on a scheduled basis.

The survey also shows that approximately 40 percent of executives surveyed expect their paper volume to increase over the next year.  Of the recipients surveyed, only 13 percent say they keep their confidential documents in a locked console within their office until a professional shredding company destroys the material.

A strong understanding of regulatory compliance laws, reinforced by training of company information security procedures are most prevalent in financial, legal and insurance industries.  Within the retail sector, 65 percent displayed a strong understanding of the legal ramifications for storing and disposing confidential documentation, but of them, only 12 percent use a locked console to store their confidential documents until a professional shredding service destroys the material.