If there was any doubt about happy workers staying put, and the dissatisfied lot look for the greener grass on the other side, then a quick glance at the latest report by Hays UK Salary and Recruiting Trends 2016 would set the record straight.
The research found that 59% i.e. 15.3 million UK workers are actively looking for a new job in 2016, mostly due to the improving economy and how undervalued they feel in their current jobs.
Ahead of this high level of movement, Ilex International, a leading Identity and Access Management firm, has warned businesses to put appropriate security control systems in place, especially when employees leave. According to their report ‘Staff migration: the security impact to businesses’, the massive exodus could result in security implications for businesses.
The report further found that 39% of large businesses took a few days to a month to close dormant accounts. This is of serious concern as it leaves the door open for cyberattack, either by hostile hackers or dissatisfied ex-employees. However, large businesses fared better than small and medium businesses, with 58% removing access to data on or before the day of departure, compared to 56% of medium and 32% of small businesses.
Group business development director at Acumin Consulting, Simon Hember, said,
“As the economy picks up, we’re expecting big changes in the workforce this year. The IT sector alone is expected to see 63% of UK professionals looking to change jobs in 2016. The movement in this department could result in increased security implications, with those responsible for controlling access to systems also in transition.”
Best practices for minimising security risks
- Get stakeholders from different departments to decide which data, software and systems they need to protect
- Shut down inactive accounts fast. Also remove any associated access rights
- Focus on protecting critical data
- Put processes in place to closely track and audit data
- Implement a strong Identity and Access Management solution
- Educate employees on the importance of cyber-security
