One in Seven SMB Employees Today Sharing File Greater Than 1GB

Symantec Corporation
announced that as online file sharing becomes increasingly common as a
business practice, SMBs are more at risk than ever before, according to
the findings of its 2011 SMB File Sharing Survey.

The survey revealed that SMB employees are increasingly adopting
unmanaged, personal-use online file sharing solutions without permission
from IT, part of the broader trend of the consumerization of IT in
which the adoption of online services for use on personal mobile devices
blurs the lines between work and play. These early-adopter behaviors –
like those driving the use of file sharing technology – are making
organizations vulnerable to security threats and potential data loss.

"A staggering 71% of small businesses that suffer from a cyber attack never recover – it’s fatal," said Rowan Trollope, group president, SMB and .cloud, Symantec. "As
the fastest adopters of cloud technologies, such as file sharing, SMBs
need to use safe practices, especially when using a solution that might
not be built for businesses. As employees increasingly adopt consumer
cloud services at work, the risk to SMBs only grows."

Survey Highlights

• Employees influence adoption of file sharing solutions internally:
  SMB stakeholders recognize that file sharing helps drive productivity
  among employees. 74% of respondents said they adopted online file
  sharing to bolster their own productivity. Also, 61% of respondents
  reported employees to be somewhat-to-extremely influential when it comes
  to adopting file sharing solutions internally, on par with mobile
  device usage (63%), PC/laptop/tablet usage (64%) and social media usage
  (53%).
• Security and data loss are potential file sharing risks:
  Many respondents recognized the potential risks that poorly managed file
  sharing practices can bring into their organizations. Among
  respondents, risks cited as potential concerns included sharing
  confidential information using unapproved solutions (44%), malware
  (44%), loss of confidential or proprietary information (43%), breach of
  confidential information (41%), embarrassment or damage to
  brand/reputation (37%), and violating regulatory rules (34%). Moreover,
  the lack of policy enforcement also enhances risks for many respondents
  as more than one-fifth (22%) of respondents have not implemented
  policies restricting how employees can access and share files.
• File sharing behaviors could expose SMBs to risk: Employee
  behaviors around file sharing indicate further potential for security
  risk. When asked what employees might do when they need to share a large
  file, respondents indicated they would either ask IT for help (51%),
  use a solution suggested by a customer, contractor or partner (42%),
  utilize the IT system in place (33%), or search online and download a
  free solution (27%). Furthermore, 41% indicated damaged brand reputation
  was a concern when it comes to file sharing.
• Files are getting bigger: Many of the files shared
  internally and externally are significantly increasing in size. One in
  seven (14%) respondents reported the average size of files currently
  shared by their organization to be more than 1GB while three years ago,
  only 6% reported the average file size to be more than 1GB.
• SMBs are more distributed: Respondents indicated the number
  of employees working remotely and/or from home has gradually increased
  over the past three years, and the number is projected to increase.
  Respondents predicted that one year from now 37% of SMB organizations
  will have employees working remotely (up 22% from three years ago and
  32% today), and 32% will have employees who work from home (up 20% from
  three years ago, and 28% today).

     
What are/were you top two most used solutions
            for sharing or colllaborating around files,
                   both internally or externally?
                                    (Today)

                
Estimate the average size of a filed
                       shared by your organization:
                                       (Today)

Recommendations
Symantec recommends that SMBs implement some simple best practices to help ensure employees share files securely:

• Centralize file storage and management with a secure web-based
  system that is accessible regardless of device or location so that
  companies protect data outside the office walls.
• Implement access controls and permissions to keep private files safe and separate from work content.
• Maintain oversight into how and when business files are shared.
• Implement a scalable system that can grow with the business.

2011 SMB File Sharing Survey
Applied Research Group fielded this survey in November 2011. They spoke with decision-makers at 1,325 worldwide SMB organizations with 5 to 500 employees.