WikiLeaks and Corporate Security: Lessons from Recent Data Leaks
Dec 04, 2010
WikiLeaks' release of secret government communications should serve as a warning to the nation's biggest companies: You're next. Computer experts have warned for years about the threat posed by disgruntled insiders and poorly crafted security policies that give too much access to confidential data. WikiLeaks' release of U.S. diplomatic documents shows that the group can—and likely will—use the same methods to reveal the secrets of powerful corporations. As WikiLeaks claims it has incriminating documents from a major U.S. bank, possibly Bank of America, there's new urgency to address information security inside corporations. This situation also highlights the limitations of security measures when confronted with a determined insider. At risk are companies' innermost secrets—emails, documents, databases, and internal websites thought to be locked from the outside world. Companies create records of every decision they make, whether it's rolling out new produ