Over three-quarters of London boroughs have implemented policies and procedures to prohibit the use of personal file sharing and sync solutions.
According to Freedom of Information request to authorities in the capital, of the 22 London boroughs that responded, 77% said they had implemented policies to prohibit personal file sharing and sync solutions at work.
Around 40% had training programmes on the use of both personal and council provided file sharing and sync applications.
The FOI requests were made by M-Files. Julian Cook, director of UK Business, said the results indicated that local UK authorities understand the security and legal risk involved when their employees use their personal file sharing apps at work.
Related Content
Bexley Council signs up Northgate for IT services in five-year deal
How technology can save council libraries
“People rightly demand high standards from public services. At the heart of local government is the delivery of services to the local community, underpinned by the effective use and exchange of information both within councils and between councils and other services such as health and education,” he said.
“It is, therefore, crucial for the public to have confidence that any data they provide is treated with appropriate confidentiality and kept safe from any risk of misuse.”
He said that simply prohibiting the use of personal file share and sync apps at work is “not the only answer”.
“Without a formal policy on the sharing of files, employees are left with no clear direction or structure on securing and controlling content,” he said.
