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Data-Breach Costs Rising, Study Finds
BobB-nw writes to tell us that a recent study of 43 companies that suffered from data breaches last year showed the total cost of dealing with the breach to have risen to $6.6 million per incident. The cost is about $202 per record compromised for first timers, while the repeat offenders seem to have their mojo down and only suffer about $192 per record. With 88% of all data loss cases for 2008 being traced back to insider negligence it's a wonder that a little upfront money isn't being directed at prevention; guess as soon as they idiot-proof it someone will build a better idiot.
Oh, no worries, cooked books taste just as good with SOX as without. As predicted, SOX hasn't changed jack; take a look at the average financial institution today and they have the vast majority of their liabilities in special purpose off balance sheet vehicles (see, as long as you only own 49% of the subsidiary, and the rest is owned by your cousins neighbours grammas old dog you don't have to bring the liabilities onto your balance sheet).
And when rules to change that (strongly opposed by Citigroup, etc) were supposed to enter into force last november, it was suddenly 'impractical' and got delayed by the FASB.
Right, 'impractical' as in 'the banks are insolvent and unless they get to cook their books it's going to be bloody obvious that actual bailout requirements are in the tens of trillions, which might be a bit unpalatable for taxpayers'.
So SOX has merely added a bunch of expensive administrative crap with no actual extra security for stock holders; they'll get screwed anyway as politically expedient.