A survey of Americans showed that almost 90-percent of them believe that people remove confidential company information from the office for various reasons, even though 78-percent of them acknowledge that this is grounds for termination (almost as high as sexually harassing a coworker).
In the survey commissioned by online file storage provider FileTrek and conducted by research agency Harris Interactive, there are six reasons why people believe it is acceptable to remove confidential data from the office:
48% – when the boss says it’s okay to do so,
32% – to finish a late night project from home instead of having to stay at the office,
30% – to work over the weekend or while on vacation,
16% – when it is confidential information about themselves,
2% – when it can be brought back to the office before the boss knows it was gone,
2% – to show something to family or friends who promise to keep it confidential.
Interestingly – albeit unsurprisingly – 68-percent of Millenials (those aged 18-34) believe it is fine to remove confidential files out of the office, while only 50-percent of the 55+ age group feel the same.
In addition, 72-percent of adults say being accused of removing confidential information by a superior is what they dread most in a work situation. Here’s an infographic showing the challenge of data sprawl:
