Majority of IT staff claim no clear definition of Big Data and its uses for IT

Whilst more than two thirds of IT staff believe Big Data should be a strategic priority, new research has shown the majority claim no clear definition of its uses for IT.

Data government software provider Varonis surveyed over 180 IT security professionals and found whilst 69% agreed that Big Data should be a key strategic priority for IT, 41% don't believe there is a clear definition. 

When asked of the importance Big Data currently takes within organisations, 32% claimed it is a strategic initiative whilst 57% reported it would be in in five years, according to the figures.

Nearly two thirds of respondents intend to use Big Data finding at risk sensitive data – the most popular response – followed by identifying possible malicious activity (47%), and finding users with excessive access rights (45%).

However, the study revealed over 80% of respondents rated their knowledge of Big Data products as low.

David Gibson, VP of strategy at Varonis, said: “This survey validates what Varonis experiences with the organisations we engage with daily – IT is looking for practical Big Data solutions for data management and protection. With the explosion of data and the demand for rapid, ubiquitous digital collaboration, IT knows traditional data management methods can no longer keep pace, so they are looking for advanced solutions to protect their data. 

“The key for IT with Big Data is to get past all the hype and to learn more about the practical benefits, like finding exposed sensitive data, flagging malicious activity and identifying excessive access.”