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Why a mobility strategy is essential

By Suzanne Franco, Surveys Editorial Project Manager at ITWeb.
Johannesburg, 07 Aug 2017
Deploy a "container" to separate personal and professional data.
Deploy a "container" to separate personal and professional data.

There's no doubt that smartphones keep employees connected while on the move, enabling them to respond faster to clients, while also giving employees instant access to essential data while on the go.

As enterprise mobility is necessary within any organisation these days, having a mobility strategy in place not only improves productivity, but also allows for better customer relations and service.

A huge risk for organisations is having their highly sensitive data lost or compromised on a mobile device. Such a cyber attack can have massive repercussions on an organisation's reputation and revenue.

ITWeb, in collaboration with Samsung, conducted an Enterprise Mobility survey during April to gain valuable insight into the enterprise mobility strategies of South African organisations.

When asked to what extent their organisation had a formal mobile strategy in place, 12% of respondents said they had an extensively developed mobile strategy, 36% had a moderate developed strategy, while 33% had a minimally developed strategy in place.

A small percentage of respondents (19%) said their organisation had no mobile strategy in place at all.

It is essential for corporate IT departments to embark on their enterprise mobility lifecycle by keeping the following key steps in mind: planning the infrastructure; device management; security; people; and app strategy and support.

There are also five key tactics that organisations should be using to mitigate enterprise mobile security risks while still giving their business the productivity tools they need. These tactics are security awareness training; favouring corporate-issued devices; having enterprise mobility tools; and deploying a 'container' to separate personal and professional data and manage apps strategically.

Frequent training enables employees to spot BYOD risks

A large combined percentage (83%) of respondents indicated that their IT department allows employees to use their own mobile devices for work functions.

Frequent training of employees who are using their own mobile device helps raise awareness of mobile security risks when employees are allowed to bring their own device. Ensuring policies and procedures are in place to protect client data is vital.

An overwhelming majority of respondents (92%) are using Android within their organisations.

It is strongly advised that they should be monitored to ensure any 'non-approved' platforms are not being used to access corporate data and apps.

A corporate-issued approach allows easier mobile management and ensures that all devices that access client data meet key security criteria.

Surprisingly 64% of respondents do not have a MDM (mobile device management) solution in place.

Enterprise mobility management tools are essential and effective MDM solutions provide the ability to:

  • * Prevent access to risky apps and Web sites.
  • * Keep track of devices across the firm.
  • * Enforce authentication pass code requirements.
  • * Remotely lock or wipe lost devices.

Fifteen percent of respondents stated they are deploying an MDM solution within six to 12 months, while 22% stated they will do so within the next three to six months.

Deploy a "container" to separate personal and professional data. A distinction must be made between private and corporate information on the device and leveraging of containerisation technologies to create this data separation layer on the device.

Containerisation solutions create a separate, encrypted area on the device that is insulated from personal Web-surfing and app use.

It emerged from the survey that the use of apps for enterprise mobility must be managed strategically.

Provide productivity apps on all devices and blacklist risky apps. Also deploy custom-built or licensed applications to the specific user groups who need them.

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