Companies are starting to become more aware of the risks they face and the steps required to address them:
1. Unknown third-party access via mobile apps
When employees install mobile apps for their personal use, there is risk of malware as well as unregulated third-party access to sensitive corporate information on their devices. To mitigate this, companies need to define a list of apps which are blacklisted and use a mobile device management system to block these applications.
2. Challenges in tracking data
Often there is no effective method of measuring additional risk exposure from the movement of data. Organisations should therefore use mobile device management tools to monitor devices against data loss.
3. Stolen, lost mobile devices leak data
A lost mobile device poses a risk of data loss, especially if companies do not enforce policies relating to the use of personal devices. The risk is greater when devices are not protected or locked with a PIN or password. A mobile device management tool allows companies to enforce a strong 6-digit password that cannot be disabled by users
4. Disgruntled employees a risk
When disgruntled employees leave without proper process, they may still receive emails or access corporate systems. Companies need to ensure that there are strong HR processes in place in order to track and detect individuals who hold corporate information on their devices. This access needs to be removed before the employee leaves.
5. Employee data privacy
Corporate information on individual devices should ideally be separate from the employee’s personal information and only accessible through a PIN or password. This allows organisations to balance protection of corporate data and privacy of employees’ data. Organisations will thus ‘own’ a piece of storage space that they can control over the employees device while the employee has privacy.