Data loss ranks as the most serious information security concern for Indian companies, followed by threats like virus attacks, denial of services and spams. According to Symantec’s new study with IDC, about 79 per cent of companies surveyed agreed on this.

“The need to protect sensitive information like source code, intellectual property, employee and customer accounts has made businesses realise that data loss can turn into a catastrophe and become a competition, compliance and credibility black hole,” said Vishal Dhupar, managing director of Symantec India.

He added that it is imperative that as part of their overall security strategy, enterprises protect their information proactively and know how this information is being used and how its loss can be prevented.

The study on mounting risk of data loss in Indian enterprises said that despite data loss being considered as a looming threat, only 15 per cent of the surveyed organisations have adopted prevention measures. This was largely a result of low awareness (32 per cent) amongst enterprises on the impact and consequence of data loss and how prevention technologies could safeguard reputation and revenue of organisations, Dhupar said. Companies adopting precautionary measures are mainly large enterprises in the IT/IteS and BFSI sectors, he added.

About 56 per cent of information, according to the respondents, is classified as sensitive. The study finds that more than 16 per cent of the organisations in India admitted to facing a data loss issue in the recent past. The major causes for these losses were traced to unaware users, malicious insiders and increasing external threats from hackers and cyber criminals.

Some 52 per cent respondents said compliance and regulatory mandates was a major driver to prevent loss of data. Pressure from international clients was the driving force behind 24 per cent organisations, while business continuity was another factor.