Stewart Joslyn (11/16/2007)
I think we're still technology fixated - you don't need a pen drive or any other IT hardware to steal a few social security numbers or bank details - a pencil and paper works perfectly well if you have any access to the data at all. Not a high volume solution but that won't make the victim - or the regulator - any happier.
While I agree with this point, I think the point of the editorial is that technology has made it easier to steal data. I can get 1000's of SSN's in under a second with a thumb drive and only 1 in the same amount of time using pen and paper.
It really is a people issue, but there are unethical people out there in every industry so you have to do your best to slow them down.
I have often thought that thumb drives should be blocked where I have worked. I worked as a contractor at a student loan provider last summer and I could walk in with a thumb drive and have all kinds of personal information. Didn't seem right then and doesn't seem right now.
Jack Corbett
Consultant - Straight Path Solutions
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