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Women are twice as bad as men when it comes to transferring personal files to their work computers. And it seems the summer season is when this phenomenon climaxes, with bragging workers eager to upload their holiday snaps.

This is according to new research from Centennial Software revealing that half of working women download personal files to their work computers, compared to just a quarter of men. But, as regards photography, only 14% of men use their work computer to download their pictures from their digital camera, while three times as many women admitted to this. Downloading music is another burgeoning trend, with 50% of women choosing their office as the best place to do this.

‘Summer sees company PCs become bloated with holiday photos and music,’ cautions Andy Burton, CEO of Centennial Software. ‘MP3 players will consume millions of digital files this year, while digital cameras will create millions more.

‘Our research shows that 35% of these files will end up on company-owned computers, presenting a huge risk to corporate networks as unmonitored devices connect with employees’ PCs.’

Centennial warns that the presence of ‘uncontrolled’ removable media devices – including iPods, USB sticks, digital cameras and PDAs – on the workplace network can dramatically increase the risks of identity theft, data loss and the introduction of viruses and malware (malicious software) into the organisation. ‘Controlling access to these devices should be a vital part of any IT policy,’ advises Burton.

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