Security, data issues worry printer users

Customers are worried about the security issues raised by network printing

Printer customers are getting increasingly worried about the network security of their machines and the growing data levels, HP said this week.

"The amount of data is growing so significantly in the enterprise space that IT managers have a really hard time handling it," said Jan Reicher, vice president of HP's Go To Market unit.

"The amount of data is doubling every 18 or 24 months, which gives some idea of the magnitude of what is happening in these companies."

As well as the rise in data usage, customers are also worried about the security issues raised by network printing.

"Security is an issue on multiple levels: security for the hardware, security for the documents and security for the information," said Bruce Dahlgren, senior vice president of worldwide enterprise sales at HP's Imaging and Printing Group.

Reicher agreed that security is now one of the top concerns for customers. Two or three years ago the concerns were about security for the printer itself because of its storage capabilities.

But the issue now is that devices are connected to the network, raising concerns about the security of the network and the data on it.

HP claimed it already has a number of products to handle security issues, and is currently working on how to better position them to meet customer needs. Anna Lagerkvist

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