Many firms are putting their data security at risk by not investing in adequate document storage.
A number of professionals working in the IT sector may be putting their sensitive corporate data at risk by not investing in secure online backup.
In a survey conducted by iStorage, more than half of respondents (57 per cent) admitted that they carry unencrypted data on USB sticks, optical media and portable hard drives.
At the same time, almost all of the respondents (98 per cent) acknowledged that losing data is a "serious and growing" concern.
The survey, which questioned 512 IT professionals at four separate information technology and security events in the UK, found that almost one in three professionals working in the IT sector (32 per cent) have previously lost a portable storage device that contained either corporate or personal information.
The vast majority of respondents (96.3 per cent) said they feel that encrypted hard drives are preferable to unprotected drives for daily use.
John Michael, managing director of iStorage, said that the results of the survey are alarming and disappointing at the same time, because people who are working in the IT industry in particular should be setting an example for the rest of the population as a whole.
"Despite nearly all of the IT experts we questioned acknowledging data loss to be a serious and growing concern it seems many are not connecting that to their own data security procedures, with nearly a third admitting to losing a portable device containing confidential data," he said.
"This is putting themselves and their organisations at risk," Mr Michael added.
Data management expert Eoin Blacklock recently pointed out that an increasing number of business are expected to use offsite backup storage techniques in the immediate future as they strive to step up their data security measures.
He maintained that 2012 will witness a growing trend of companies prioritising data security.