IT security professionals are struggling to secure their organisations and protect them against breaches with 61 per cent claiming to have experienced a data breach at their current employer, says a new report from global cyber security firm McAfee.

Data is now being stolen by several methods, with no single technique dominating the industry.

The top vectors used to appropriate data are database leaks, Cloud applications and removable USB drives, said the report titled "Grand Theft Data II — The Drivers and Shifting State of Data Breaches".

Data breaches are becoming more serious as cyber criminals continue to target intellectual property, putting the reputation of company brand at risk and increasing financial liability, the results showed.

"Threats have evolved and will continue to become more sophisticated," Candace Worley, Vice-President and Chief Technical Strategist at McAfee, said in a statement.

"Organisations need to augment security measures by implementing a culture of security and emphasising that all employees are part of an organisation's security posture, not just the IT team," Worley said.

For the study, data was collected via online interviews of IT professional in several countries, including India, between 12 and December 31, 2018. To qualify for the survey, organisations had to have more than 1,000 employees.

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According to results, personally identifiable information is of greater concern in Europe, most likely due to enforcement of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR).

In Asia-Pacific countries, intellectual property theft is of greater concern than personally identifiable information, the study said. (IANS)