RJ and Makay

Almost twice as many financial services companies suffered information theft, loss or attack in the past 12 months than in the previous year, according to a new study by the Economist Intelligence Unit and security company Kroll.

The report found that 42% of financial services companies polled suffered data loss in the past year, compared to 24% in the previous survey. This was a greater a proportion than in any other sector. Across all sectors the incidence of information theft, loss or attack rose from 18% in 2009 to 27.3% in 2010.