Espionage, sabotage, and theft are rampant: A good half (51%) of all German companies have already fallen victim over the past two years.
Particularly hard hit, apparently, is the automotive industry, at 68%, followed by the chemical and pharmaceutical sector (66%), and then the banks and insurance companies (60%). However, the company size also plays a role: Medium-sized enterprises, at 61%, are the most affected by espionage or sabotage. The Bundesverband estimates the total damage to the German economy at around EUR 51 billion per year. What’s especially bitter is that, according to the companies, 52% of the perpetrators are employees or former employees.
The procedure is sometimes far less sophisticated than the security discussions would suggest: In 28% of the companies surveyed, computers, smartphones and tablets have been stolen in the past two years. The BITKOM blog therefore posts reminders of the basic security measures. These includes, notably, raising the awareness of employees to help them better respond to suspicious situations and to actually see that the respective safety requirements are being observed. The departments must ensure under all circumstances that documents are shredded and then disposed of; undamaged documents can be very valuable not just for criminals, but for the competition. And telephone calls are best made in quieter sections of a railway station or airport. As well, every notebook or tablet should have a privacy film that protects against prying eyes to the side of the screen.
BITKOM has summarized the main findings in protecting the digital economy in a series of charts available for free download as a PDF. (Source: BITKOM/BITKOM-blog/bs)