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Stolen Boeing laptop held ID data on 382,000
December 14, 2006
Boeing announced last week it fired an employee who it said violated company policy by downloading sensitive information onto a laptop without using encryption technology. Boeing took the action after learning the laptop, which contained personal information about 382,000 Boeing employees and retirees, had been stolen from a car. The theft of the laptop put those whose information was on the machine at risk for identity theft.
The theft marked the third time in roughly a year in which a laptop containing sensitive personal information about Boeing employees and other individuals was stolen. A laptop stolen in April contained personal information on about 3,600 people, and one stolen in late 2005 contained information on 161,000.
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how much do ya think he was paid to download sensitive info to an unsecured laptop and leave it in his car?
Amazing. Talkin about too many reruns of "The X-Files"...get a freakin life....not EVERYTHING is a conspiracy moron-wake up ;)
BTW... what the heck did he say he was going to do with it on the laptop?!
But I agree with others' comments. The added public step by all companies in such situations needs to be to let the world know the individual is being thoroughly investigated for possibly having done it deliberately.
It's the mentality that, "this will never happen to me," that gets people into trouble, so they end up doing it anyway.
I think this is the right course of action for Boeing or any other company that allows users to take laptops home - fire irresponsible people.
The data on the laptops is what's important, not the laptops themselves.
Telecommuters should be forced to take a simple and instructive training course on the proper use of laptops - from how to access company networks to storage when on the road.
And just because you have a BIOS password on it doesn't mean it can't be reset.
I assume that Boeing has a server with this stuff on it, so why the need to lug it all home?
If I had my "company" laptop stolen, the swipers would have some quarterly reports and 20 CDs or so of music. And my grandkids photos.
I have, what they call, a VPN account, and the password is in my brain (with a paper copy in my sock drawer).
***!
The stupidity of people never ceases to amaze.
At least some software companies are working on this problem. A company I recently interviewed with is developing software that does not allow downloading and transfer of data except under certain circumstances set by the customer.
It is sad that this sort of project is necessary, but as long as idiots and/or malicious employees exist it is.
Who granted him those rights? That is the person whom should be fired!
There is ONLY ONE WAY to strong security...
To start with, tie everything down and give NOBODY access to ANYTHING.
Then with certain need, have a request placed for ONLY the required access, minimally open up only what is required and for the time required. Ensure the time has a short deadline of a maximum of 3 months such that it gets reviewed every 3 months to see whether such access is still required or not.
A constant review of who has acces to what and whether it's required or not should already be ongoing... but apparently not.
But I still can't believe a Defense Contractor would have such lax security.
Fireing the guy won't keep it from happening again. Firing the current security management team WILL however give them one last chance to do things the right way if they get a good/new security team to replace the current so-called security team.
Walt
mouth off you do it. nice work buddy
- Punishment fits the crime
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by mjd420nova
December 20, 2006 8:34 PM PST
- I guess I'd be rather upset if I was the CIO and one of your vulnerable sources of info is now outside the company. What ever happens, if the corporate bosses have to answer up to either the feds, the public or shareholders, the the responible individual is no longer working for you. What possesses these people to take chances with vital info. The government does not have a monopoly on stupidity.
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