The document discusses how employees are putting companies' intellectual property at risk through their behaviors and attitudes. Some key points: - One-third of employees move work files to unauthorized file sharing apps. Over half do not think using a competitor's trade secrets is illegal. Most companies do not take steps to ensure competitive info is not used. - Half of departing employees kept confidential info and 40% plan to use it at their new job. Many employees regularly take IP outside the company without removing it. - Employees often think they own the IP they create or that it is acceptable to reuse code at other companies. Most do not think their actions are illegal or against company policy.

1. How Employees are Putting Your Intellectual Property at Risk
One-third move work
files to file sharing apps
without permission
56% of employees do not
believe it is a crime to use a
competitor’s trade secrets
68% say their company
does not take steps to
ensure employees do not
use competitive info
Half of employees who left/lost their
jobs kept confidential information
Future employers become unwitting
recipients of stolen IP
40% plan to use it in their new job
Employees
regularly take IP
outside the com-pany
and never
clean it up
Most employees
think it's OK to use
competitive data
taken from a
previous employer
Employees think
they own the IP
Employees don’t think
their organizations care
2 out of 5 download work
files to personally owned
tablet or smartphone
44% believe a developer
who creates source code
for a company has some
ownership of his work
42% do not think it’s a
crime to reuse this code
for other companies
Half say no action is taken
when employees take sensitive
information against policy
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RECOMMENDATIONS
A multi-pronged approach
1. Employee education:
Let your employees know that taking confidential information is wrong. Make IP theft
awareness integral to security awareness training.
2. Enforce NDAs:
Make employees aware that policy violations will be enforced and theft of company
information will have negative consequences to them and their future employer.
3. Monitoring technology:
Learn where IP is going and how it's leaving your network. Deploy Data Loss Prevention
technology to notify managers and employees in real-time when sensitive information
is inappropriately sent, copied or otherwise wrongly exposed.
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WHAT’S YOURS IS MINE:
Source: What’s Yours Is Mine: How Employees are Putting Your Intellectual Property at Risk,
Symantec in partnership with the Ponemon Institute, February 2013