-
The Visual Privacy Advisory Council is a group of data privacy and security thought leaders dedicated to raising awareness of this issue and promoting best practices and policies to prevent costly visual hacking attacks.
-
What is visual hacking and why should you care?
Visual hacking is the act of viewing or capturing sensitive, confidential or private information for unauthorized use. Examples of visual hacking include:
- Unauthorized viewing of hard copy documents, computer or mobile device screens - "shoulder surfing"
- Photgraphing screens and physical documents with smartphones
- Physical theft of sensitive documents and targeted data
Organizations spend millions on IT security but often do little to prevent the display of sensitive, proprietary and confidential data in plain sight. Failing to address this vulnerability can put any organization at risk.
Facts about visual hacking
In a recent study, an undercover visual hacker was sent into several participating corporate offices. The results the Visual Hacking Experiment serve as a good reminder of the importance of addressing visual privacy in organizations.
-
Visual hacking is real.An undercover visual hacker obtained sensitive information in 88% of the trials.1
-
Multiple types of information are at risk.An average of 5 pieces of sensitive information were visually hacked per trial1, including corporate financials, and confidential employee and customer information.
-
Visual hacking often goes unnoticed.The visual hacker went unnoticed or unchallenged by employees 70% of the time.1
-
1 Ponemon Institute, “3M Visual Hacking Experiment,” 2015, sponsored by 3M and the Visual Privacy Advisory Council.
-
Dr. Larry Ponemon on the Visual Hacking Experiment
READ ARTICLELearn more about the Visual Hacking Experiment from Dr. Larry Ponemon.
-
Visual Hacking Risk Areas
READ ARTICLEMari Frank points out risk areas in order to protect client confidentiality.
-
Visual Hacking and Cyber Security
READ ARTICLEPatricia Titus recommends raising awareness on visual privacy.
VPAC Members 2
-
Chairman & Founder
The Ponemon Institute -
Enterprise Chief Privacy Officer
U.S. Bank -
Attorney/Mediator & Privacy Counsultant/Expert
Mari J. Frank Esq. & Associates
-
VP & CISO
-
Manager, Information Security & Compliance
3M -
President, Healthcare Security and Privacy
The Marblehead Group
-
2 The people appearing here are members of the Visual Privacy Advisory Council and receive compensation from 3M in connection with his or her participation on the Visual Privacy Advisory Council.
-
About the Visual Privacy Advisory Council
The Visual Privacy Advisory Council is a group of data privacy and security thought leaders dedicated to raising awareness of this issue and promoting best practices and policies to prevent costly visual hacking attacks.
See membersArrow
-
Contact VPAC
Have a question or a media inquiry? We'd love to hear from you to discuss data privacy and security issues further.
-
Connect on LinkedIn
Follow our LinkedIn page to join the conversation on helping emphasize the importance of visual privacy.
Go to LinkedInArrow
