The study highlights growing concerns about social networks and how data trails can be mined for sensitive information, even when people attempt to keep information about themselves private.

CNN: Facebook reveals secrets you haven't shared

In addition to the 49% of schools which said they allowed the data to be taken home by staff, a further 4% said they left sensitive and unprotected data at unsecured locations in the school.

BBC: RELATED BBC SITES

"Gemalto has been an early mover in developing its software and servicing capabilities to remotely manage sensitive data for different security implementations on connected devices, and we are excited to be part of this new venture that will pave the way for accelerating the adoption of a Trusted Execution Environment utilizing ARM TrustZone technology, " said Olivier Piou, CEO of Gemalto.

ENGADGET: ARM seeks better security for connected devices, teams up with Gemalto and Giesecke & Devrient

Data from license plate readers is considered law enforcement sensitive and can only be shared with law enforcement personnel and special investigative units of the NICB on an official need-to-know basis.

FORBES: U.S. Customs Tracks Millions Of License Plates And Has Shared Data With Insurance Firms

All of these processes deal with varying degrees of sensitive data and unless a savvy corporation asks for that data to be encrypted and transmits that data in a secure fashion, risks continue to persist.

FORBES: The Epsilon Hack Attack: Time For "SOX For Consumers"?

"The biggest problem in the past with aerial imagery in agriculture is that everything is time-sensitive, and with unmanned aerial vehicles we'd be able to process that data much more quickly, " said Steve Cubbage, president of Prime Meridian, a company that sells precision agriculture data services to growers.

WSJ: Farmers Experiment With Drones

And because tagging data come in continually, this could mean that sensitive areas in the ocean could be flexible, changing in both time and space.

ECONOMIST: Oceanography

Defense contractors, who possess sensitive military data, are particularly likely to be monitored by the new Einstein program, and critical infrastructure systems are also likely to fall under its surveillance.

FORBES: Congress Grills White House Cybercrats