Data explosion shakes up IT

In just three years, the bytes of data generated by digital cameras, mobile phones, business IT systems and other tech devices will equal the number of grains of sand on the world's beaches. It's a mind-boggling estimation from market analysis company IDC. But it reflects the proliferation of devices and systems used by consumers and businesses, said Stephen Minton, IDC's vice president of worldwide IT markets and strategies, during a briefing today.

Over the next few years, corporations will face tough decisions on how to store data, find information and comply with regulations, said Minton, who laid out a forecast of what IT managers can expect from what's being labeled the "information explosion."

It won't be an easy task. While 85% of that data is predicted to come from consumers snapping photos, surfing Web pages and sending e-mail, about 60% of that consumer data will still cross corporate networks, Minton said.

Much of the data is unstructured, meaning it's not clearly labeled as to its content -- such as photos, video and perhaps phone recordings -- which makes it more difficult to use.

But technologies that enable deep analysis of the data are emerging, and they could help businesses unlock what's important and improve their operations.