New My MX Data show that nearly a fifth of reported breaches from file-sharing activities result from misconfigurations and lack of transfer visibility.
-- New figures released by My MX Data, a UK-based secure file-transfer platform, reveal that 17 percent of all reported data breaches originate from file sharing or file-transfer vulnerabilities. The number was drawn from anonymised feedback collected across the company’s client network, covering hundreds of organisations in finance, healthcare, manufacturing and professional services.
The analysis followed six months of incident data and client reports. It found the same issues appearing time and again: misconfigured permissions, insecure transfer tools and untracked exchanges with external vendors. In most cases, once a file was sent, the sender lost visibility. That moment of handover, it seems, remains one of the least controlled points in the entire data lifecycle.
The 17 percent figure aligns with industry observations shared by CerberusFTP, Varonis and Gartner, which note that roughly one in five breaches stem from weaknesses in file handling. These breaches rarely involve sophisticated hacks. More often, they begin with everyday oversights: an exposed transfer portal, an outdated sharing platform, or files lingering longer than intended on external systems.
“People invest heavily in network security, yet the simplest action - sending a file - is still often left to chance,” said Michael Byrne, Product Lead at My MX Data. “When information moves, that’s where the real risk begins. Most breaches don’t happen inside the vault, they happen on the way out.”
Rather than focusing on file storage, MX was built around the act of transfer itself. Each file is temporarily fragmented, encrypted and sent across independent channels before being reassembled by the authorised recipient. Once complete, the data disappears from MX’s infrastructure, leaving behind only a verifiable transfer record for compliance teams to review.
The company’s findings show that misdirected files and expired access links remain two of the most frequent triggers for incident alerts. Both can be avoided with controlled, time-bound transfers and clear audit visibility. As regulatory expectations rise under GDPR, HIPAA and NIST 800-171, the focus is shifting from where data is stored to how it moves.
Byrne added, “It’s not about paranoia, it’s about precision. Every transfer is a decision point. When that’s handled securely, you remove one of the most persistent sources of corporate breaches.”
The results underline a broader shift across industries: secure file sharing is no longer a convenience feature, it’s a critical control point in protecting business integrity.
For more information about My MX Data, use the contact details below.
Contact Info:
Name: Michael Byrne
Email: Send Email
Organization: My MX Data
Address: 3 Argosy Court, Scimitar Way, Whitley Business Park, Coventry CV3 4GA
Phone: +44(0)24 7630 8500
Website: http://www.mymxdata.com
Release ID: 89175182
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