IT chiefs need to fundamentally rethink their approach to IT security, one expert has claimed.

Gene Hodges, chief executive of Websense believes that firms should focus more on securing data if they are to protect themselves against financial loss, ITweek.co.uk reports.

This would mean IT security measures focusing on ensuring that hackers cannot obtain critical data, he explained.

Speaking to the website, Mr Hodges said: "You need to give up on trying to secure end points and concentrate on data."

He added that the traditional IT security view that users can be prevented from acting in a manner which puts systems at risk is "naïve and impractical".

Mr Hodge's comments echo those recently made by a number of other commentators.

Earlier this month ZDnet reported that Debi Ashenden, a research fellow at the Defence College of Management and Technology at Cranfield University believes that firms often fail to educate their staff about basic IT security.

She said firms should not look to "command and control" users but rather interact with them.

According to a recent survey by Connect, the two biggest IT headaches for businesses were 'everyday hassles with IT' (37 per cent) and 'security concerns' (32 per cent) In a recent survey of SMEs for Connect, the two most important benefits of outsourcing were 'guaranteed response times' and 'allowing in-house IT staff to concentrate on more strategic issues'.