Utilities businesses risk GDPR penalties by not wiping old computers

A new report shows four months after their introduction, the majority of UK utilities are still failing to adhere to some of the rules

Utilities are risking GDPR penalties by not wiping data off old computers before they are thrown out.

That’s according to a survey of 1,002 workers from a range of sectors, conducted by IT firm Probrand – the results show 58% of businesses in the utilities industry failed to wipe the data from IT equipment they disposed of in the two months following the introduction of GDPR measures.

It warns months later, the majority of UK businesses in the sector are still failing to adhere to some of the rules.

The survey also highlights how 92% of all utilities do not have an official process for disposing of obsolete computer equipment, with 92% of workers admitting they wouldn’t know who to approach within their company in order to correctly dispose of their devices.

The report suggests only industries with a worse record of throwing out confidential information were the transportation (72%), sales and marketing (62%) and manufacturing (59%) sectors.

Matt Royle, Marketing Director at Probrand, said: “Given the amount of publicity around GDPR it is arguably impossible to be unaware or misunderstand the basics of what is required for compliance.

“So, it is startling to discover just how many businesses are failing to both implement and follow some of the simplest data protection practices.”

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