IT decision-makers blindly trust suppliers and waste technology, research shows
- Many IT leaders simply have to believe vendors when it comes to security claims and claim reporting
- However, safety remains a top priority for leaders
- Inability to clean equipment properly leads to waste
New research from HP Wolf Security has found that many IT decision makers (ITDMs) feel at the mercy of vendors; 45% admit they don’t have the resources to validate firmware and hardware security claims, so they have to trust vendors’ claims without question.
The study examines ITDMs’ attitudes toward firmware and hardware, and the implications for cybersecurity concerns. The survey shows that platform security is a growing concern for leaders, with 81% of ITDMs agreeing that hardware security should be a priority going forward to protect devices from exploitation.
More than half of ITDMs (52%) say they rarely work with security and IT professionals to verify vendor claims, and 48% say their procurement teams are like ‘lambs to the slaughter’ because they security claims from suppliers.
An e-waste epidemic
Security emerged as a major concern for all respondents, which is perhaps no surprise as more businesses than ever are being affected by security risks, but data security concerns are also causing an ‘e-waste epidemic’, 60% of leaders admit. .
Nearly a third (68%) say they have a ‘significant number of devices’ that could be donated or reused if they could decontaminate them, but 59% admit it is too difficult to give devices a second life because of concerns on data security prevent this through reuse, with many devices being destroyed.
“IT teams are hoarding discarded devices because they cannot be assured that all sensitive corporate or personal data has been completely erased – which in itself can pose data security risks and negatively impact ESG objectives.” said Grant Hoffman, SVP Operations and Portfolio, HP Solutions.
“Finding a reputable IT resource provider that uses the latest, industry-standard disposal or media destruction processes and provides a data sanitization certificate to help you meet compliance requirements is critical.”