Ponemon Institute

Ponemon Institute conducts independent research on privacy, data protection and information security policy. Our goal is to enable organizations in both the private and public sectors to have a clearer understanding of the trends in practices, perceptions and potential threats that will affect the collection, management and safeguarding of personal and confidential information about individuals and organizations. Ponemon Institute research informs organizations on how to improve upon their data protection initiatives and enhance their brand and reputation as a trusted enterprise.

In addition to our research, Ponemon Institute provides strategic consulting to private and public sector organizations interested in establishing or enhancing their privacy, data protection, and security practices. To ensure that their goals are achieved, organizations engage us to assess their practices and conduct workshops and training programs.

Ponemon Institute is the parent organization of the Responsible Information Management (RIM) Council. The RIM Council draws its name from the practice of Responsible Information Management, an ethics-based framework and long-term strategy for managing personal and sensitive employee, customer and business information.

Members of the RIM Council represent a cross-section of Fortune 500 companies and are champions of privacy and data protection in their organizations. Through working groups and special projects, our RIM Council members create practical solutions to the privacy and data protection challenges faced by organizations.

It's Not Fish Ye're Buying, It's Men's Lives

6/30/2009

It's not fish ye're buying, it's men's lives. Scottish author and poet Sir Walter Scott is said to have uttered those words in reference (and reverence) to the toil and sacrifice made by commercial fishermen in an age when harvesting the ocean’s bounty was an even greater risk than portrayed by the popular television show Deadliest Catch. The phrase came to mind recently while conducting interviews with a number of prominent privacy professionals for an ...more

Blog

It's Not Fish Ye're Buying, It's Men's Lives
June 30, 2009
It's not fish ye're buying, it's men's lives.  Scottish author and poet Sir Walter Scott is said to have uttered those words in reference (and reverence) to the toil and sacrifice made by commercial fishermen in an age when harvesting the ocean’s bounty was an even greater risk than portrayed by the popular television show Deadliest Catch. Permalink

Social Networks Expose Lax Privacy Attitudes
June 14, 2009
Are online social networking utilities, such as blogs, Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn, and other popula Permalink

More Employees Ignoring Data Security Policies
June 10, 2009
Does it surprise you to learn that, according to our recent study, Trends in Insider Compliance with Permalink

Why You Need a Social Media Policy: A Case Study
May 15, 2009
Many companies are struggling with how best to integrate social media into their day-to-day business activities. Permalink

News & Events

Trends in Insider Compliance with Data Security Policies

According to the findings of this study, employees don't believe their companies provide adequate training about compliance with data security policies or requirements, they don't think data security policies are effective and confirm that policies are largely ignored by a majority of employees including management personnel. Sponsored by IronKey and conducted by Ponemon Institute, this survey of almost 1,000 end-users of corporate information technologies (IT) to determine if they believe their organizations are proactively protecting equipment and information assets by forbidding illegal data transfer, restricting password sharing with co-workers, limiting access to web-based email accounts, seizing legal attachments sent to personal email addresses, and preventing anti-virus or firewall settings from being disabled by employees on their workplace computers.

Notebook Computer Study Reveals Security Implications of Mobile Workforce

Study Uncovers Surprising Financial Repercussions of Lost and Stolen Notebooks

Wall Street Journal Cites Ponemon Research

The Wall Street Journal's Joseph de Avila cites findings from the recent Ponemon Institute report, Data Loss Risk During Downsizing, in a story about employee access to data after being laid off.

Ponemon-Symantec Job Loss/Data Loss Video

Symantec, sponsor of the Data Loss During Downsizing study, produced a great YouTube video promoting the report. Watch the video here.

AJC Editorial Highlights Ponemon Privacy Trust Study

Former Georgia congressman and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr highlights the Ponemon Institute's Privacy Trust Study of the United States Government in a new editorial for the Atlanta Journal Constitution. Check it out here!

Ponemon Data Cited in CNN Travel Tips Column

The Ponemon Institute's April 22 study, The Cost of a Lost Laptop, was used by CNN.com writer Debra Alban in her recent Road Warriors article, How To Safeguard Your Data As You Travel. Alban cited the $49,246 figure as the total cost impact of a lost laptop, as well as the nearly $20,000 difference when data on a lost laptop is encrypted.

Forbes Article Examines Hidden Cost of Privacy

Lee Gomes of Forbes recently wrote an article examining The Hidden Cost of Privacy regulations and compliance. Gomes cited data from our The Cost of a Lost Laptop study. Included in the article were quotes from our good friends Trevor Hughes (IAPP), Jay Cline (Minnesota Privacy Consultants), and Kirk Nahra (Wiley Rein).