Companies 'not aware of where electronic data is kept'
Deloitte survey discovers that many UK companies are not in command of the information regulators will require in the event of an investigation
A significant proportion of companies are not fully aware of where their
company’s corporate data is held, a Deloitte survey has revealed.
The survey – of 100 UK businesses with a turnover of between £1bn and £3bn –
showed that only 29% of companies are aware of where their corporation’s data is
held and would be able to retrieve this in the event of a request from the
regulator.
Sixty-six percent were ‘reasonably’ aware of where it was held, while 5% said
they did not know.
Kelvin McGregor-Alcorn, Deloitte director in the Forensic and Dispute
Services team, said: ‘When it comes to the reality of what companies have to
produce, and the time and format they have to produce it in, they tend not to
have a grasp of the breadth and depth of power of regulatory bodies.’
‘There is a naivety on the Board that management of electronic data will be
dealt with properly and efficiently, and often an assumption made that the board
will know all about it. Another assumption is that companies can conduct their
own investigations. Regulators simply do not allow this. ‘