US Interior Department Loses Track of Computers - No Encryption Requirement

Via FCW -

The Interior Department can’t account for hundreds of its personal computers and laptops, according to a newly posted report.

The department's inspector general found 13 computers missing and, more importantly, nearly 20 percent of more than 2,500 computers could not be specifically located. Compounding the lack of accountability, Interior doesn’t have encryption requirements, leaving the department's sensitive information vulnerable, the report from April 24 states.

The IG recommended that Interior set departmentwide policies for tracking which employees have computers and where the computers are. Currently, each bureau there has its own rules, the IG said.

“This lack of accountability stems from the department not requiring that computers be treated as sensitive property,” the IG wrote.

The IG also recommended:

• Encrypting all of the department’s portable computers.
• Requiring that employees report lost computers to the department’s Computer Incident Response Center.
• Erasing information properly from computers before disposal.