GFI Software: too many alerts and increasing shadow IT are eroding corporate security

IT workers face increasing distractions leading to errors and potential financial losses

PRAGUE, May 28, 2024 – GFI Software, a provider of enterprise network security solutions, said that more complex IT infrastructure and more complex corporate network configurations are putting pressure on IT staff to deal with an increasingly distracting environment. For example, 69% of GFI Software’s Czech and Slovak partners admit they are overloaded with too many alerts, which ultimately leads to unnecessary resource waste, security risks or lost productivity.

GFI Software has identified the following main causes of distraction:

• Shadow IT with unknown, unwanted or unmanaged devices, software or services – for example, BYOD devices with personal apps, legacy and unused apps, and workstations with custom apps, whether enabled or not. It is estimated that employees may have over a hundred custom applications installed on top of the corporate infrastructure. Shadow IT is experienced by 56% of our IT workforce.
• Overloaded with information or alerts generated by workflow, workgroup collaboration, and personal life. According to a global survey, each IT worker receives an average of 63 notifications per day, and 69% of local IT admins struggle with too many alerts.
• Over-reliance on automated tools such as generative AI, automated responses, automated tasks, etc., which reduce vigilance and create a false sense of security. According to one survey, 31% of enterprises have at least one automated function. In our country, only 3% of local workers admit to being distracted by automation.
• Overly complicated configurations and processes are typically found in CRM, network configuration and project management. By some estimates, 90% of applications are not configured correctly. Similar problems are admitted by 31% of local partners in our country.

Distracted attention easily leads to mistakes. For example, missing an update in an unknown application can cause vulnerabilities in the corporate network, while notification overload leads to missing critical alerts, repeatedly entering the same passwords, or responding to a false alert. Overestimating the capabilities of generative AI and the accuracy of automation tools is also increasingly common today. 38% of partners surveyed said that these errors resulted in unnecessary waste of resources, 27% experienced sensitive data leakage, and another 14% experienced loss of account control and productivity.

“At our company, we strive to minimize the negative effects of distraction by offering enhanced security tools, said Jozef Kačala, Vice President of Global Sales Engineering at GFI Software. “For example, AI-based features have been added to the GFI MailEssentials solution to enable Data Leakage Prevention (DLP). GFI ClearView, on the other hand, provides accurate visibility into network traffic and can help with, for example, shadow IT. And GFI LanGuard can also scan devices outside the corporate network, providing a complete audit of devices and software, and can uninstall unwanted applications if necessary.”