Laptop Owners Have "Gadget-Obsessed Lives"

A recent study conducted by Credant Technologies has found that many people who own a laptop are browsing the web in their pyjamas for more than six hours a week. The survey revealed that more than half of UK workers are taking their laptop or other mobile devices to bed and are using them before going to sleep.

Credant Technologies, a data protection company, undertook the survey on 300 workers to uncover patterns of laptop use and security implications.57% of these confessed to spending at least six hours a week working on their laptops from their bed before they go to sleep. Most of them suggested that their partners found the habit "very annoying", with 8% of the offenders admitting to spending more time on mobile devices than talking to their partners each night.

44% of the respondents admitted to storing important work documents on their mobile devices and 54% of those devices lacked encryption, whilst one-fifth of the respondents acknowledged using wireless networks that aren't secure while they work in bed. The survey also revealed that 87% of respondents favour connecting to the Internet via wireless networks while in bed and 47% said they connect to wireless networks in hotels without thinking about security.

Michael Callahan, Vice President at Credant, said, “This survey confirms that there is a growing population that is no longer restricted by working hours or confined to the office building itself.” Callahan remarks, “People are mobile and will work anywhere -- even in bed. Therefore, when sensitive and valuable data is being held on these devices and they get lost, it can have pretty detrimental and far-reaching consequences to both the worker and their employer.”

Credant advised the 4 per cent of respondents who said the last thing they do before going to sleep is to check their e-mail messages and complete work to "take a long, hard look at their gadget-obsessed lives." The company also advised encryption of data stored on mobile devices, the use of strong passwords, awareness of all points of connection, turning off unsecured Bluetooth and Wi-Fi devices, and leaving the laptops behind at bedtime.