Basic aspects of IT security may hold true everywhere, but there are differences in China, Europe, India, and the United States when it comes to protecting business data and systems.

Companies in all four regions consider viruses and worms to be among the three highest priorities they defend against, according to InformationWeek Research's Global Security Survey 2006. Yet only slightly more than half of Chinese companies have bought virus-detection software, compared with 84% of those in the United States, 73% in India, and 72% in Europe. Chinese and Indian companies have been hardest hit by viruses in the past year, with 85% and 70% reporting this type of breach, respectively.

A greater percentage of Chinese companies report being hit by worms, Web scripting language violations, and cyberextortion than those in the other regions, but they're troubled less by phishing. Only 16% of Chinese companies reported such attacks.

Indian companies worry about unauthorized employee access to data and theft of intellectual property, and they're more aggressive than the other regions in using biometrics to identify users. While 16% of Indian companies protect their systems using biometrics, only 9% of U.S. and 4% of European and Chinese companies do so.

Sixty-four percent U.S. and Indian companies favor fining or otherwise punishing employees who make security policy or procedure mistakes. European companies are divided on the issue, with 35% for punishment, 35% against it, and 30% unsure. U.S. and Indian companies are more likely to hold vendors legally and financially liable for security vulnerabilities in products.

Only 11% of U.S. and 13% of European companies feel more vulnerable to malicious code attacks and security breaches than a year ago. Their counterparts in China and India aren't as confident, with 16% and 24% feeling more vulnerable, respectively.

Looking ahead, 42% of Indian and 36% of U.S. companies have made it a priority to monitor user policy compliance over the next 12 months. Only 12% of Chinese companies plan to do so. Instead, Chinese businesses look to technology to address security concerns: 43% of Chinese companies are planning to install application firewalls.

Continue to the sidebars:
Built-In Software Security Flaws Have Companies Up In Arms
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InformationWeek Global Security Survey 2006: Controlled Chaos