Despite a recent string of highly publicized attacks by computer hackers, most data breaches stem from employee goofs, a study has determined. But it also noted that the threat from cyber attacks is growing and that those cases tend to be far more costly to investigate.
That conclusion comes from the London-based insurer Beazley, based on its review of more than 1,500 data breaches in 2013 and this year.
It found that 31 percent of the breaches were deemed unintended disclosures, such as misdirected emails and faxes, and 24 percent were due to the physical loss of paper records, a particular problem among healthcare organizations.
Breaches due to malware represented only 11 percent of the cases, it noted. But the number of those types of attacks has grown 20 percent over the last two years.
Moreover, the study found, cyber-related breaches are 4.5 times more costly than those caused by employees, because the hacks cost more to investigate.
Illustration by KRT Archives
