IT Managers Fear Security Breaches Could Cost Their JobsIT Managers Fear Security Breaches Could Cost Their Jobs

The majority of IT professionals are concerned that they will lose their jobs if a security breach hits their company, according to a new study.

The survey, which was done by market research firm King Research, also showed that most IT managers in midsize companies say they are ill prepared when it comes to systems and security management and they are not confident in their safeguards.

"IT departments around the globe are working endlessly to combat and minimize security issues," said Diane Hagglund of King Research. "But even with the wide range of tools these organizations have invested in, there are still security gaps. Few IT professionals, those from the midmarket sector in particular, feel equipped to deal with lost corporate or personal data, and most don't include end-node vulnerability scanning as part of their ongoing security strategies."

IT managers also said they are inconsistent when it comes to managing their security systems. For example, although 81% included patch management as part of their security strategy, only 35% of responding participants included desktop and laptop vulnerability scanning.

Seventy-three percent of Fortune 100,000 IT professionals say they are worried they could lose their jobs if their companies are hit with a major security breach; 62% of respondents who are personally responsible for IT security report that responsibility affects them in a personal way, meaning they take their worries home with them; 87% of IT managers are confident in their ability to deal with viruses, spam, spyware, and malware, but only 35% say they are equipped to deal with lost corporate or personal data.

One-third of companies said in another poll that came out last week that a major security breach could put their companies out of business, according to a report from McAfee. The security company unveiled a study Tuesday showing that 33% of respondents said they believe a major data-loss incident involving accidental or malicious distribution of confidential data could put them out of business.