Why is Information Assurance (IA) important?
With business becoming increasingly information-based and the proliferation of the Internet and e-commerce, organizations face significant challenges in trying to protect their information. Threats such as hacking, employee information theft, and viruses can cause severe damage to a company’s operations and reputation. Security is now viewed as a measure of business competence. Taxpayers expect organizations to protect their information assets as vigorously as they protect their investment and public assets. By creating a security program, an organization’s management team makes a clear statement to its stakeholders that the protection of electronic data is an enterprise-wide priority. Protecting information assets also reduces an organization’s exposure to liability in the event of a security incident, a crucial benefit in today’s world of increasing security threats.
