New McAfee research reveals 61% of IT professionals have experienced a serious data breach

Integration of Security Solutions and Employee Training Recognised as Top Steps to Reduce Growing Severity of Breaches
McAfee, the device-to-cloud cybersecurity company, have released Grand Theft Data II – The Drivers and Shifting State of Data Breaches, which revealed that despite improvements in combating cybercrime and threats, IT security professionals are still struggling to fully secure their organisation and protect against breaches with 61% claiming to have experienced a data breach at their current employer.
Adding to this challenge, data breaches are becoming more serious as cybercriminals continue to target intellectual property putting the reputation of the company brand at risk and increasing financial liability.
McAfee’s study demonstrates the need for a cybersecurity strategy that includes implementing integrated security solutions combined with employee training and an overall culture of security throughout the organisation to reduce future breaches.
Candace Worley, vice president and chief technical strategist at McAfee, said: “Threats have evolved and will continue to become even more sophisticated.
“Organizations need to augment security measures by implementing a culture of security and emphasizsng that all employees are part of an organization’s security posture, not just the IT team. To stay ahead of threats, it is critical companies provide a holistic approach to improving security process by not only utilising an integrated security solution but also practicing good security hygiene.”
The McAfee report highlights the following:
Savvier thieves: Data is now being stolen by a wide range of methods, with no single technique dominating the industry. The top vectors used to exfiltrate data are database leaks, cloud applications and removable USB drives.
IP tied for 1st: Personally identifiable information (PII) and intellectual property (IP) are now tied as the data categories with the highest potential impact to 43% of respondents. Notably, PII is of greater concern in Europe (49%), most likely due to the recent enforcement date of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR). In Asia-Pacific countries, intellectual property theft is of greater concern (51%) than PII.
Blame game: IT is looked at as the culprit with 52% of respondents claiming IT is at fault for creating the most data leakage events. Business operations (29%) follows as the next most likely to be involved. Highly regulated internal groups including finance (12%) and legal (6%) were the most secure.
The great divide: Security technology continues to operate in isolation, with 81% reporting separate policies or management consoles for cloud access security broker (CASB) and data loss prevention (DLP), resulting in delayed detection and remediation actions.
Taking responsibility: There is a rift in regard to accountability – 55% of IT professionals believe that c-level executives should lose their job if a breach is serious enough, yet 61% also state that the c-level executives they work with expect more lenient security policies for themselves.
Future proofing: IT professionals are taking action, with almost two-thirds stating they have purchased additional DLP, CASB and endpoint detection solutions over the last 12 months. Respondents believe that between 65% and 80% of breaches experienced would have likely been prevented if one or more of these systems had been installed.
The stakes are higher as multiple attack methods are now used in a breach as cybercriminals continue to target personal data and intellectual property. Furthermore, IT security teams are increasingly concerned about external threat actors compromising their network, which has forced more organisations to publicly disclose when breaches occur. The severity of publicly disclosing breaches results not only in financial repercussions but damage to brand and reputation as well.

About Security Buyer

Security Buyer is the leading authority in global security content, delivering expert news, in-depth articles, exclusive interviews, and industry insights across print, digital, and event platforms. Published 10 times a year, the magazine is a trusted resource for professionals seeking updates and analysis on the latest developments in the security sector.

To submit an article, or for sponsorship opportunities, please contact our team below.

Rebecca Spayne picture 2025

Rebecca Spayne

Managing
EDITOR

Georgina Turner image

Georgina Turner

Sales
Manager

Afua Akoto image - Security Buyer

Afua Akoto

Marketing Manager

Read the Latest Issue

Follow us on X

Follow us on X

Click Here

Follow us on LinkedIn

Follow us on LinkedIn

Click Here

Advertise here

Reach decision makers and amplify your marketing

Advertise here

Click Here

Related News

Trellix

Symphony Technology Group launches of Trellix

Symphony Technology Group (STG) announced the launch of Trellix, a new business delivering extended detection and response (XDR) to organisations

Into the Cloud: Vibin Shaju

Vibin Shaju, General Manager at UAE, McAfee Enterprise. What does ‘security’ mean to you?  Protecting millions of families, including mine,
working employee remotely

Four steps to ensure business continuity when employees are working remotely

To help business protect itself against cyber-attacks, IT departments are focused on making sure that data remains available and protected 24/7/365
shutterstock_437844922

Financial threats in 2020: These are the key predictions from Kaspersky

In 2020, financially motivated cyberthreat actors may start to target investment apps and other areas according to Kaspersky in the financial sector

Financial threats in 2020: These are the key predictions from Kaspersky

In 2020, financially motivated cyberthreat actors may start to target investment apps and other areas according to Kaspersky in the financial sector
Josh Douglas

Mimecast research finds 75% of organisations in UAE saw an increase in impersonation attacks

Third Annual State of Email Security Report Reveals a Major Increase in Targeted Attacks Like Impersonation Fraud and Spear Phishing
Candace Worley

New McAfee research reveals 61% of IT professionals have experienced a serious data breach

Integration of Security Solutions and Employee Training Recognized as Top Steps to Reduce Growing Severity of Breaches

New data reveals 60% of organisations have not evaluated continuity risks across their cloud services in over a year

Databarracks reveals over 60% of organisations have not evaluated the continuity risks for their cloud services over the past year.
Databarracks

New data reveals 60% of organisations have not evaluated continuity risks across their cloud services in over a year

Databarracks reveals over 60% of organisations have not evaluated the continuity risks for their cloud services over the past year.

500 million guests affected by Marriott data breach

Marriott International has confirmed a data breach to the Starwood guest reservation database which has seen the details of up to 500 million guests stolen.
Scroll to Top