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Delivering Danger?
Added: (Tue Jun 27 2006)
New Pitney Bowes Study Reveals Sectors
Most At Threat From Suspicious Mail
A new study by Pitney Bowes Management Services (PBMS) has highlighted those industry sectors that receive a higher proportion of mail-based security attacks.
PBMS analysed a representative sample of the secure mail facilities of organisations across the US and the UK to establish the sectors that receive most suspicious packages. Using a year’s worth of data on mail throughput and suspicious parcel investigation, an index of vulnerability was constructed amongst key sectors, revealing relative levels of suspicious letter or package receipt.
The resulting index figures showed that Government, Finance and Hi-tech companies stand out as those mainly at risk from attack through the mail – a scale leap ahead of any other sector studied. Evidently, organisations within these sectors that do not yet have secure facilities screening their mail need to act fast if they are not to face insupportable levels of risk.
Richard Thompson, Managing Director, Pitney Bowes Management Services, states: “For organisations seeking to protect themselves, their employees and their finances, the accumulation of smaller and far less publicised threats actually poses far higher total risk than major acts of terrorism. These individual threats range across the actions of disgruntled employees, activist groups and straightforward criminality.
“None of the sectors studied, even if their vulnerability score is below average, should be complacent. The cost of closing a site because of attack – or even threat of attack – can result in huge financial penalties for businesses of every size.
“The ease with which a terrorist, a disgruntled customer, an activist group or a criminal can introduce threats to a company or government organisation in the guise of an envelope or package, means that the postroom is a critical point of vulnerability. At the same time, it can also be made into a highly controlled environment where mail is screened, threats identified and danger isolated and averted. Organisations must concentrate on addressing the points of potential attack that can be monitored and controlled in practicality.”
Ends
Pitney Bowes provides the world’s most comprehensive suite of mailstream software, hardware, services and solutions to help companies manage their flow of mail, documents and packages to improve communication. Pitney Bowes, with $5.6 billion in annual revenue, takes an all-inclusive view of its customers’ operations, helping organizations of all sizes enjoy the competitive advantage that comes from an optimized mailstream. The company’s 86 years of technological leadership have produced many major mailstream innovations, and it is consistently on the Intellectual Property Owners Association’s list of top U.S. patent holders. With approximately 34,000 employees worldwide, Pitney Bowes serves more than 2 million businesses through direct and dealer operations. More information about the company can be found at www.pb.com.