A survey conducted by software company Ivanti suggests that the combination of work-from-home and in-office set-up is increasing the vulnerability of government agencies’ IT networks to cyber attacks.
Ivanti’s Government Cybersecurity Status Report, which was released Thursday, highlighted that tech security risks are rising due in part to a “not my job” attitude among government employees.
Among more than 800 government employees in the study, 70 percent said that they worked virtually some of the time. Results showed that 5 percent of the respondents failed to recognize phishing attacks, and 36 percent did not report such e-mails if they received them at work.
The survey also noted a lack of concern among employees when it comes to agencies’ online security. Thirty-four percent said they do not think their actions will affect government information safety, while 21 percent admitted that they did not care if their office gets hacked.
“We are in a state of urgency when it comes to securing critical infrastructure, along with public sector employees and the extremely sensitive data they have access to,” said Srinivas Mukkamala, Ivanti’s chief product officer. “Government leaders around the world have recognized this urgency and are taking steps to combat ransomware, misinformation, and to protect their critical assets and infrastructure.”