Young Professionals, College Students Admit They'll Go To Extreme Measures for Internet Access Despite IT Policies

Seven out of 10 young employees frequently ignore IT policies, and one in four is a victim of identity theft before the age of 30, according to a global study from Cisco announced today. The final set of findings from the three-part Cisco Connected WorldTechnology Report reveals startling attitudes toward IT policies and growing security threats posed by the next generation of employees entering the workforce – a demographic that grew up with the Internet and has an increasingly on-demand lifestyle that mixes personal and business activity in the workplace.

Considering that at least one of every three employees (36%) responded negatively when asked if they respect their IT departments, balancing IT policy compliance with young employees' desires for more flexible access to social media, devices, and remote access is testing the limits of traditional corporate cultures. At the same time, these employee demands are placing greater pressure on recruiters, hiring managers, IT departments, and corporate cultures to allow more flexibility in the hope the next wave of talent can provide an edge over competitors.

Key Findings

Adhering to IT policies

-- Of those who were aware of IT policies, seven of every 10 (70%) employees worldwide admitted to breaking policy with varying regularity. Among many reasons, the most common was the belief that employees were not doing anything wrong (33%). One in five (22%) cited the need to access unauthorized programs and applications to get their job done, while 19% admitted the policies are not enforced. Some (18%) said they do not have time to think about policies when they are working, and others either said adhering to the policies is not convenient (16%), they forget to do so (15%), or their bosses aren't watching them (14%).

-- Two of three (67%) respondents said IT policies need to be modified to address real-life demands for more work flexibility.

-- Companies restrict many devices and social media applications. Of these, young employees said online gaming (37%) was the most commonly restricted application. Apple iPods (15%) were the most commonly restricted device.

-- One in 10 (10%) employees globally said IT policies prohibit the use of iPads and tablets, signaling a growing challenge for IT teams as tablet popularity increases. Three of 10 employees (31%) said social networking sites like Facebook, Twitter, and YouTube were prohibited as well.

-- Three of five employees (61%) believe they are not responsible for protecting information and devices, believing instead that IT and/or service providers are accountable.

Risky behavior: Unsupervised computer usage

-- More than half of the employees surveyed globally (56%) said they have allowed others to use their computers without supervision – family, friends, coworkers, and even people they do not know.

-- College students exhibited higher tendencies than young employees to engage in risky online behavior. More than four of five college students (86%) said they have allowed others to use their computer unsupervised, indicating that this behavior is only going to become more prevalent as the next generation of employees enters the workforce over the next few years.

-- More than one in 10 college students (16%) admitted leaving personal belongings and devices unattended in public, while getting something to eat or drink at a café or going to the restroom.

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