Users need access to data and they prefer to carry one phone, one tablet and one laptop. Employees want to keep their work lives separate, but the BYOD trend has blurred the line between home and work.
Today, teams are global, disparate and dependent on the apps for that task that makes their jobs easier. In today’s post we’ll take the side of the BYOD user and explore the top seven privacy concerns that make this area of enterprise IT top of mind.
- Will the company have access to my personal data? This is probably the top concern for users who want to bring their devices to work. Personal data is, well, personal. And they want to keep it that way. However, highly regulated industries and government bodies may need to access private data in the event of a lawsuit or security breach. This concern should be looked at from three sides – employee security (in the case of loss or theft), company data security and usability to reduce overhead.
- Will the device be regulated or just the applications? A recent research report from 451 Research titled “Mobile Management Disorder” examines this in great detail and lays out the advantages of MDM, MAM and several other strategies. For users, the concern is remembering/entering complex passwords. For IT, the concern is locking down data while keeping the device usable.
- Will the company need to locate the device? This is a major privacy concern for end users because they want to keep personal time separate from work time. However, in the case of theft, fraud or loss, the company may need to know the location of the device to protect the user and the company. The IT manager’s concern is transparency and data security. It’s a tough balancing act, which leads to MAM vs. MDM.
- Will front line employees have rapid access to data? Data is necessary on the front lines and this proves to be one of IT’s biggest challenges. Users like their mobile access to CRM, inventory and sales apps from their smart phones or tablets. However, managing data access policies on these devices can be cumbersome. The challenge lies in keeping security high while making the technology flexible enough for working in the field.
- Will the user be able to apply updates quickly? The 451 research shows this to be a major challenge in the BYOD arena. Sure, most organizations are working within two major platforms (iOS and Android). However, the reality is that the mobile platforms don’t make security and updates an easy task. Further, users don’t want to have to bring devices in for updates, particularly their personal phones or tablets.
- What about email security? Email is still the primary file transmission for most users. However, it’s a huge security liability for IT. According to 451, the “major limitation for security has been [that] the native clients on mobile devices have been largely built for consumers and lack the level of control that enterprises need.” Users want to use their “mail apps” and that means IT will need to focus on all the security elements – attachments, usability and what apps have access to company data.
- What about support? Supporting devices and accessing them securely is a major privacy concern for users. They don’t want just anyone on their devices and neither does the enterprise. Also of concern to users and IT is what devices will the company support?
All in all, these top seven privacy concerns for mobile device management will be on the minds of users and IT as BYOD expands in the coming year. Will you be ready?
