With visual hackers only needing one piece of information to unlock a large scale data breach, at the International Security EXPO, Peter Barker, EMEA business manager at 3M Privacy Solutions, explained how the 3M Privacy Filters can help nullify this potential threat to organisations
As Barker opened, the modern day workplace has been radically changed since the outbreak of Covid-19. Potentially the biggest change that workers and employers are experiencing is the movement towards work outside of the office which is, now more than ever, being conducted at public spaces as much as at home.
The rise of this type of work has birthed opportunity for visual hackers who can peak over a shoulder to see sensitive information on an employee’s screen. Barker noted that this does not even have to be particularly important, but even a recognisable name could give someone an ‘in’ to a company and lead to a security breach.
According to Barker, 64% of IT managers are concerned about visual hackers and the security of remote workers and yet 55% of managers have not taken steps to prevent people from viewing their colleague’s screens when they are away from the office.
Research conducted by 3M showed that it only takes 15 minutes to complete a visual hack in 45% of attempts and, on average, five pieces of sensitive information are stolen at each attempt. Alarmingly, 70% of these attempts, were not stopped by employees.
These statistics are most worrying for industries most vulnerable to data breaches at the hands of visual hackers which Barker listed as:
-Banks/finance
-Legal
-Healthcare
-Enterprises
-It/Tech centres.
To protect against such threats, 3M Privy Solutions has developed Privacy Filters which prevents views from side lookers by blocking 60⁰ either side. The product has a breadth of range, and is usable on monitors up to 49”. It has also been designed to be securely and effortlessly attached for ease of use and to prevent it being left behind. Importantly, the product does not affect workflow as the image clarity remains crisp and clear.
