Most of us in IT are aware of the recent data thefts of personal information within the United States government. Over the past couple weeks the VA admitted that files containing personal data for more than 50,000 active duty and more than 26 million veterans was stolen. In related news it was also reported that the "Energy Department disclosed to Congress on Friday that it suffered a security breach from a hacker in September that compromised 1,500 personnel records".
With the above stories fresh in our minds, we have chosen an opinion piece by Frank Hayes as this week's IT Quote of the Week:
Too many of our business processes are just as messy as the VA's. For years, we've collected data via the Web or by using customer relationship management systems, much of it data that we don't need, don't keep proper track of and haven't properly secured...As we watch the VA's fiasco continue to unfold, we're in no position to feel superior or complacent. That could be us.
-Frank Hayes, Number Control, Computerworld, June 12, 2006