Bank loses 4.5 million files

It's getting to be an all-too-familiar problem--a breakdown in controls combined with carelessness leading to theft of confidential data. The latest example is the confirmation by Bank of New York Mellon Corporation that unencrypted data storage tapes holding personal information of more than 4.5 million customers were lost in transport more than three months ago by a third-party vendor.

So far, the bank said, none of the unencrypted data has been accessed or used. The loss is causing big headaches for the bank - a lawsuit and investigations by several states.

CIOs know the risks of lax security and the consequences of data theft, and need to be constantly vigilant to make sure their IT staff take every precaution to protect their companies, customers and employees.

To read more about this problem:
- see this ComputerWorld.com article