(Ellen Messmer, NetworkWorld) A survey of more than 900 IT managers shows that adoption of encryption in their organizations is being driven by two main factors, anxiety about possible cyberattacks and the need to meet the payment-card industry (PCI) data security standards.

According to the Ponemon Institute's "2010 Annual Study: U.S. Enterprise Encryption Trends," 69% of the 964 IT managers responding to the survey said the need to meet regulatory compliance was the driving force behind deployment of encryption in their organizations. And the most important regulatory factor to them was the need to meet encryption requirements of the PCI data security standard.

Another important factor spurring organizations to adopt encryption is fear related to cyberattacks. Some 88% of organizations in the survey acknowledged at least one data breach, up three points from 2009. "And of those, "23% had only one breach and 40% had two to five breaches." These numbers were consistent with last year's results, but those experiencing more than five data breaches a year was up 3% from 2009.