Business travelers are losing more than 12,000 laptops per week at U.S. airports. Only one-third of those are reclaimed, according to a study by the Ponemon Institute, sponsored by Dell.
At the same time, more than 53 percent of polled business travelers say their laptops contain confidential or sensitive information, and 65 percent of these travelers admit they do not take steps to protect or secure the information contained on their laptop.
Companies are dependent on a mobile workforce with access to information no matter where they travel. This mobility, however, is putting companies at risk of having a data breach if a laptop containing sensitive information is lost or stolen. To gather more information about this concern, the Ponemon Institute conducted field research at 106 major airports in 46 states and surveyed 864 business travelers in an airport environment. Among the findings revealed in this study:
The average loss frequency among the largest U.S. airports is 286 laptops per week or 10,278 for all 36 Class B airports included in the study. The comparable frequency for the remaining large U.S. airports is 28 devices per week, or 1,977 for all 70 Class C airports included in the study.
The airports with the highest number of lost, missing or stolen laptops include: Los Angeles International, Miami International, Kennedy International and Chicago O’Hare. While Atlanta’s Hartsfield-Jackson International is the busiest airport in the United States, it is tied for eighth place (with Washington’s Reagan National) for lost, stolen or missing laptop computers.
The 67 percent of subsequently found laptops remain in the airport until they are disposed of, often sold at auction to the highest bidder or donated to charity, resulting in potentially millions of files containing sensitive or confidential data that may be accessible to a large number of airport employees and contractors.
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