Nearly one third of workers would feel more violated if their digital data was taken, than if their home was broken into, with young people particularly concerned about digital theft.
But the reasons why young workers are concerned about their data, also make them a risk to their employers.
Citrix found that 31% of workers would feel more violated by files being stolen from their computer than if an intruder goes into their house. That level was as high as 45% with those aged between 16 and 24.
Half of the respondents said that they store confidential information in private folder that would not want to be accessed by anybody else. 48% of 16-24 year olds have more than one such folder,
A quarter of that younger age group of workers keeps all of their passwords in a single folder on a computer or mobile device, meaning one act of theft could expose all their accounts to hackers.
Chris Mayers, chief security architect, Citrix, said these "younger age groups are particularly at risk as they are more likely to store larger volumes of important data online."
This goes some way to explaining this age group’s higher level of concern. It also makes them an enterprise security risk.
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"Protecting our information and digital identities against hackers is absolutely crucial, both at home and at work", said Mayers. "Attackers are successfully gaining access to sensitive data because the correct security measures are either not in place or not followed. As a result, business-critical data and intellectual property can be left vulnerable to cyber criminals."
The survey was conducted amongst 2,000 workers.
