BPO firms lack seriousness on cyber fraud threats:

Most cyber frauds in India's business process outsourcing (BPO) sector take place due to lack of strict implementation of existing information security protocols together with poor employee awareness, a survey jointly conducted by industry body ASSOCHAM and Microsoft says.

The Associated Chambers of Commerce and Industry of India (ASSOCHAM) along with Microsoft conducted the survey titled, 'Understanding the perceptions and awareness around cyber security among employees working in BPOs,' in Delhi-NCR and Kolkata to ascertain the level of awareness regarding cyber frauds among people employed in the sector.

The survey sample design comprised four focus group discussions (FGDs) and 20 in-depth interviews (IDIs) held across Delhi-NCR and Kolkata, an ASSOCHAM statement said.

It was noted that awareness about cyber frauds was low among freshers and job applicants, but it was relatively higher in experienced employees.

"Both employees and customers are to be blamed for cyber frauds as employees lack ethics and customers for being careless about security and privacy," admitted experienced BPO professionals while acknowledging that computer hacking, credit card/bank frauds, malware/virus, tech support scams are "most prevalent."
"Basic protocols like frisking/checking before entry/exit, no mobile phones on floor, no pen and paper and others are frequently overlooked, thereby exposing gaps."
"There is also little awareness on importance of protecting data of clients leading to casual attitude of employees towards data."