[July 19, 2011] Hackers leave CIOs on edge Tweet Jul 19, 2011 (Star Tribune - McClatchy-Tribune Information Services via COMTEX) -- Hackers on the prowl for sensitive data. Staff shortages that make it tough to implement the latest technology. A tight market for programmers that makes it easy for the best ones to jump to new jobs. These are a few of the challenges that turned up in a survey of 1,400 corporate chief information officers (CIOs), the executives responsible for maintaining and defending corporate infrastructure. It's so bad, they said in the survey by staffing giant Robert Half Technology, that nearly a quarter of them reported losing sleep over data security issues and system upgrades. The role of a CIO is more challenging today, as managers deal with employees who want to access sensitive company information on their personal smartphones and iPads, said Tom Kieffer, chairman of the Minnesota High Tech Association. "That's driving CIOs crazy, because they are more difficult to secure," Kieffer said. "It's been more difficult than it ever has been to deal with all of those expectations." The Robert Half survey -- dubbed the "CIO Insomnia Project" -- found that corporate computer systems are breached an average of three or more times a year. Results released Monday found that 65 percent of the 1,400 CIOs surveyed admitted that their computer systems had been hacked. The CIOs said they are under constant pressure to update company infrastructure. Wayne Shurts, CIO at the Eden Prairie-based grocery giant Supervalu, said managing security is "something that we pay extraordinary attention to," especially because retailers deal with sensitive information such as credit card data. The survey also found that: --24 percent of CIOs said they lost sleep over data security issues and system upgrades. --37 percent are planning software and hardware upgrades. --63 percent complain that short staffing prevents their companies from implementing innovative technologies. --34 percent said they fear losing their top software programmers to competitors. The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development and employment agencies across the state have recently reported that the demand for IT upgrades is helping to boost hiring in Minnesota. Many firms, however, are turning to temporary contractors for upgrades before bulking up their departments with permanent staffers. Ryan Masanz, chief technology officer for Anytime Fitness, said finding and keeping good IT people in Minnesota can be a challenge because the talent pool is smaller here. "It is definitely a concern for me," Masanz said. "We do everything we can to make people happy." Another issue facing CIOs is deciding whether to move information to the cloud, a virtual database stored online. Some IT professionals have questioned the security of cloud computing. Shurts of SuperValu said his company hopes to move to a cloud-based e-mail system by the end of this year. But he said the complications of the job provide motivation. "Stress kind of charges me up to get solutions," Shurts said. "The stress motivates me to find answers as opposed to making me worry." [email protected] --612-673-1712 [email protected] --612-673-7725 To see more of the Star Tribune, or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.startribune.com/. Copyright (c) 2011, Star Tribune, Minneapolis Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services. For more information about the content services offered by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services (MCT), visit www.mctinfoservices.com. [ Back To TMCnet.com's Homepage ]