Information Leakage Countermeasures for Companies: Learning from the Top 3 Causes

Information leakage is a serious management risk for companies. Leaks of personal information or confidential corporate information can cause significant damage, including financial losses and a decline in credibility.

This article examines the damage and impact of the top 3 causes of personal information leakage and provides detailed information on effective information leakage countermeasures.

Understand the key points for strengthening corporate information security and establish concrete measures to prevent information leakage.

Table of Contents

1. Top 3 Causes of Information Leakage and Their Damage
   1. Worst 1: Virus Infection/Unauthorized Access
   2. Worst 2: Misdisplay/Mis-transmission
   3. Worst 3: Loss/Incorrect Disposal
   4. Resulting Damage and Impact
2. Why Do Information Leakage Incidents Occur?
1. Why Does “Virus Infection/Unauthorized Access” Occur?
2. Why Does “Misdisplay/Mis-transmission” Occur?
3. Why Does “Loss/Incorrect Disposal” Occur?
3. What Kind of Information Leakage Countermeasures Are Needed?
1. Introduction and Strengthening of Security Systems
2. Thorough Password Management
3. Establishment of Internal Security Policies and Thorough Dissemination to Employees
4. Setting Appropriate Access Rights to Confidential Information and Organizing Filing
4. Summary

1. Top 3 Causes of Information Leakage and Their Damage

According to a survey by Tokyo Shoko Research, of the 165 personal information leakage/loss accidents announced by listed companies in 2022, the most common cause was “virus infection/unauthorized access”, followed by “misdisplay/mis-transmission”, and then “loss/incorrect disposal”.

Reference: Tokyo Shoko Research “Personal Information Leakage/Loss Accidents Updated for Two Consecutive Years. 165 Cases, 5.92 Million Pieces of Leaked/Lost Information ~ 2022 Survey of “Personal Information Leakage/Loss Accidents of Listed Companies” ~” [https://www.tsr-net.co.jp/data/detail/1197322\_1527.html]

1-1. Worst 1: Virus Infection/Unauthorized Access

Accidents caused by “virus infection/unauthorized access”, which was the worst 1, accounted for 91 cases (55.1%) out of all 165 cases, which is more than half.

Specific examples include the following:

Virus Infection

• Files infected with malware or viruses infiltrated the company’s computer system, and confidential information and personal information were stolen.
• An employee accessed a fake website due to a phishing attack and entered personal information and login information.
• Files infected with viruses were stored on file sharing servers or cloud storage, spreading the infection to other employees.

Unauthorized Access

• Malicious hackers exploited security vulnerabilities to infiltrate the company network and steal important data and confidential information.
• Individuals without proper authorization obtained access to important data, resulting in information leakage or tampering.
• Employees abused their access privileges and leaked obtained information to external parties.

1-2. Worst 2: Misdisplay/Mis-transmission

The second worst, “misdisplay/mis-transmission” (43 cases, 26%), is caused by human system setting errors or email transmission errors.

Specifically, the following cases can be considered:

Misdisplay

• Due to incorrect system environment settings, information that should not have been disclosed externally was displayed.
• Outdated information was left in documents sent to external business partners.
• Incorrect information was included in websites or presentation materials.

Mis-transmission

• An employee mistakenly sent an email containing confidential information to an external business partner or customer.
• Information that should not have been sent to external business partners or customers was mistakenly sent externally.
• When sending a large number of emails all at once, the sending destination was set incorrectly, and information was sent to unrelated people.

1-3. Worst 3: Loss/Incorrect Disposal

The third worst, “loss/incorrect disposal” (25 cases, 15.1%), refers to incidents where important documents or data containing confidential information or personal information are not properly managed and are lost or incorrectly disposed of.

Specifically, the following cases apply:

Loss

• Confidential information was saved on a USB memory stick or SD card, but it was lost.
• Important documents or files cannot be found, and their storage location is unknown.
• Confidential information taken out by an employee has gone missing.

Incorrect Disposal

• The disposal of files containing confidential information was insufficient.
• Hard disks and storage media scheduled for disposal were disposed of with confidential information remaining.
• The selection of information necessary for disposal was insufficient, and important data was mistakenly disposed of.

1-4. Resulting Damage and Impact

Companies can suffer a lot of damage from these causes.

For example, the risk of losing trust from customers and business partners will increase as personal information is leaked, and suspension or cancellation of transactions will be unavoidable. The loss of trust due to information leakage will seriously damage the company’s brand image and reduce its competitiveness in the market.

In addition, the economic loss due to information leakage will have a major impact on the company’s performance, including litigation costs, losses due to business interruption, and decreased sales due to customer churn. Furthermore, if a company violates laws and regulations such as the Personal Information Protection Act, the company may be held legally responsible.

Companies need to strengthen their information leakage countermeasures on a regular basis to minimize these risks.

2. Why Do Information Leakage Incidents Occur?

In order to implement appropriate information leakage countermeasures, it is necessary to correctly recognize the factors that caused such information leakage accidents.

2-1. Why Does “Virus Infection/Unauthorized Access” Occur?

“Virus infection/unauthorized access” is thought to occur due to security vulnerabilities or employees’ lack of security awareness.

It is necessary to assume that systems and applications always have security vulnerabilities. Malicious third parties will be the first to find these vulnerabilities and infiltrate the system to steal information.

In addition, unauthorized access may occur if access rights to internal systems and data are set inappropriately, or if employees abuse their privileges. Malicious hackers or organizations may attack information systems from outside and attempt unauthorized access.

In addition, if employees’ awareness of security is insufficient, the risk of information leakage will further increase, such as clicking links in phishing emails carelessly or replying to fraudulent emails.

2-2. Why Does “Misdisplay/Mis-transmission” Occur?

The main factors that cause “misdisplay/mis-transmission” are mostly due to human error or insufficient system settings.

For example, when employees create or edit documents or emails containing confidential information, they may include incorrect information due to carelessness or some other error. They may also send emails to the wrong recipients or attach the wrong files, sending them to addresses that should not have been sent.

In addition, employees with low awareness of information security or new employees may not have the appropriate knowledge or experience regarding the handling of information, which may be the cause.

2-3. Why Does “Loss/Incorrect Disposal” Occur?

“Loss/incorrect disposal” occurs due to inadequate management of documents that should be stored or improper disposal processing.

This is because important documents and data containing confidential information or personal information are not stored in the appropriate location, or sufficient access control is not performed. It may also occur because the originally agreed-upon procedures or processing were not followed when disposing of documents or data.

In addition, if data containing confidential information is stored on external storage media such as USB memory sticks, the risk of information leakage increases if these devices are lost.

3. What Kind of Information Leakage Countermeasures Are Needed?

In order to reduce the risk of information leakage even a little, companies need to implement a combination of possible measures.

3-1. Introduction and Strengthening of Security Systems

The introduction and strengthening of security systems is a fundamental and important point of information leakage countermeasures. By introducing reliable security software and performing regular updates and monitoring, companies can prevent malicious access and virus intrusion.

In addition, by introducing log monitoring and intrusion prevention systems to detect unauthorized access, it is possible to detect and respond to anomalies early on.

3-2. Thorough Password Management

Thorough enforcement of strong password management is also an important information leakage countermeasure.

Employees should be encouraged to set complex passwords. They should be encouraged to set secure passwords by using long strings of characters that are difficult to guess, and by randomly mixing alphanumeric characters and symbols. Simple strings of characters or English words found in dictionaries should be avoided as much as possible.

In addition, using the same password for multiple accounts reduces the risk of a breach of one account spreading to other accounts. Measures should also be taken to further strengthen security, such as introducing multi-factor authentication as needed.

3-3. Establishment of Internal Security Policies and Thorough Dissemination to Employees

Establishing appropriate security policies for the handling of information is the first step toward preventing information leakage.

By conducting regular training and education to raise employees’ security awareness and ensuring that they comply with security policies, the risk of information leakage can be reduced.

3-4. Setting Appropriate Access Rights to Confidential Information and Organizing Filing

Setting appropriate access rights to confidential information and organizing filing is an important measure to reduce the risk of information leakage. Data access rights must be granted on a need-to-know basis according to job duties, and information handling must be clarified in accordance with strict access control management.

Also, for analog information such as paper documents, thorough filing should be done according to file organization and classification rules, and confidential information should be properly stored to prevent information loss or mis-disposal.

Summary

We have confirmed the importance of information leakage countermeasures from the top 3 causes of information leakage. By implementing these measures in combination, it is possible to protect confidential information and personal information.

However, information leakage countermeasures should not be determined once and for all. It is important to continuously review and improve them as needed. Information leakage countermeasures should be viewed as an organization-wide effort, and information security should be constantly strengthened through employee cooperation.

For EXO Security pricing inquiries, please contact globalsupport@jiran.com.

For EXO Security free trial inquiries, please contact globalsupport@jiran.com.