88% of IT admins would steal data if fired

An IT administrator scorned is not to be trusted, according to a study recently conducted by Cyber-Ark.

The security firm claims a survey conducted on 300 security professionals found a whopping 88 per cent of IT admins would steal valuable and sensitive company information if they were fired tomorrow. Only 12 per cent said they'd leave empty handed — or at least were smart enough not to openly admit they'd plunder sensitive data on a questionnaire.

"Our advice is to secure these privileged passwords and identities, and routinely change and manage them so that if an employee's contract is terminated, whether voluntary or not, they can't maliciously wreak havoc inside the network or vindictively steal data for competitive or financial gain," said Cyber-Ark CEO Udi Mokady.