| Data security is the means of ensuring | | | | other hand-held devices. Removable media |
| that data is kept safe from corruption | | | | devices are getting smaller with |
| and that access to it is suitably | | | | increased hard drive capacity, and |
| controlled. Thus data security helps to | | | | activities such as podslurping are |
| ensure privacy. It also helps in | | | | becoming more and more common. It is now |
| protecting personal data. | | | | possible to store 40 GB of data on a |
| In the UK, the Data Protection Act is | | | | device that will fit in an employees |
| used to ensure that personal data is | | | | pocket, data that could contribute to |
| accessible to those whom it concerns, | | | | the downfall of a business. |
| and provides redress to individuals if | | | | Data corruption refers to errors in |
| there are inaccuracies. This is | | | | computer data that occur during |
| particularly important to ensure | | | | transmission or retrieval, introducing |
| individuals are treated fairly, for | | | | unintended changes to the original data. |
| example for credit checking purposes. | | | | Computer storage and transmission |
| The Data Protection Act states that only | | | | systems use a number of measures to |
| individuals and companies with | | | | provide data integrity, the lack of |
| legitimate and lawful reasons can | | | | errors. |
| process personal information and cannot | | | | Data corruption during transmission has |
| be shared. | | | | a variety of causes. Interruption of |
| The International Standard ISO/IEC 17799 | | | | data transmission causes information |
| covers data security under the topic of | | | | loss. Environmental conditions can |
| information security, and one of its | | | | interfere with data transmission, |
| cardinal principle is that all stored | | | | especially when dealing with wireless |
| information, i.e. data, should be owned | | | | transmission methods. Heavy clouds can |
| so that it is clear whose responsibility | | | | block satellite transmissions. Wireless |
| it is to protect and control access to | | | | networks are susceptible to interference |
| that data. | | | | from devices such as microwave ovens. |
| Data theft is a growing problem | | | | Data loss during storage has two broad |
| primarily perpetrated by office workers | | | | causes: hardware and software failure. |
| with access to technology such as | | | | Head crashes and general wear and tear |
| desktop computers and hand-held devices, | | | | of media fall into the former category, |
| since employees often spend a | | | | while software failure typically occurs |
| considerable amount of time developing | | | | due to bugs in the code. |
| contacts and confidential and | | | | When data corruption behaves as a |
| copyrighted information for the company | | | | Poisson process, where each bit of data |
| they work for they often feel they have | | | | has an independently low probability of |
| some right to the information and are | | | | being changed, data corruption can |
| inclined to copy and/or delete part of | | | | generally be detected by the use of |
| it when they leave the company, or | | | | checksums, and can often be corrected by |
| misuse it while they are still in | | | | the use of error correcting codes. |
| employment. | | | | If an uncorrectable data corruption is |
| While most organizations have | | | | detected, procedures such as automatic |
| implemented firewalls and | | | | retransmission or restoration from |
| intrusion-detection systems very few | | | | backups can be applied. RAID disk |
| take into account the threat from the | | | | arrays, store and evaluate parity bits |
| average employee that copies proprietary | | | | for data across a set of hard disks and |
| data for personal gain or use by another | | | | can reconstruct corrupted data upon of |
| company.[citation needed] A common | | | | the failure of a single disk. |
| scenario is where a sales person makes a | | | | If appropriate mechanisms are employed |
| copy of the contact database for use in | | | | to detect and remedy data corruption, |
| their next job. Typically this is a | | | | data integrity can be maintained. This |
| clear violation of their terms of | | | | is particularly important in banking, |
| employment. | | | | where an undetected error can |
| The damage caused by data theft can be | | | | drastically affect an account balance, |
| considerable with today's ability to | | | | and in the use of encrypted or |
| transmit very large files via e-mail, | | | | compressed data, where a small error can |
| web pages, USB devices, DVD storage and | | | | make an extensive dataset unusable. |