Though outsourcing risks have always been present, in recent years and even months, the damage a company can incur as a result of poor outsourcing decisions has become even more apparent. For example, according to a 2013 global security report, poor outsourcing decisions caused 63 percent of data breaches. A recent survey from an Internet security company estimated that the average cost of a data breach exceeded $7 million.
Well-publicized examples have recently created a vivid picture of the myriad issues arising from faulty or poorly managed third-party outsourcing relationships. For instance, the recent high-profile data breach at a large retailer has been at least in part attributed to the ability of hackers to access the retailer data via a third-party provider.
