Belated Benefits

Do your ex-employees still have access to your files?

Businesses are putting themselves at increased risk of losing data by not curbing the actions of current and former employees. Around 25% of workers in South Africa still have access to files and documents from a previous employer, putting the integrity of data and company livelihood at risk, according to new research, Sorting Out Digital Clutter In Business from Kaspersky Lab.

Former employees can use this data for their own purposes, for example in a new workplace, or they may accidentally delete or damage it. As a result, data recovery will require time and effort that could otherwise be spent on more useful business tasks.

With every business today drowning in digital files, using collaboration applications, and having online documents and file-sharing services, it can be hard to keep track of what data resides where, and who has access to it. However, this lack of clarity when it comes to ‘digital clutter’ is not only an organizational headache: failing to lock down data that lives online could pose a disadvantage or even a threat to business.