Mobile Malware Puts BYOD at Risk

One of the fastest growing business technology trends is employees using their personal mobile devices for work purposes (aka BYOD). The trend is growing so fast that Juniper Research estimates there will be one billion employee-owned devices used in enterprises by 2018. Is your business prepared for the changes coming from BYOD?

One billion BYOD devices in use by 2018 will make up roughly 35% of all tablets and smartphones. This means that mobile device manufacturers will come out with more products that can handle the demands of business. This trend also means that hackers will be focusing their efforts on the mobile realm more than ever before. This increase in mobile malware poses the biggest threat to businesses that don't have a BYOD security strategy in place, which is why Juniper Research projects that nearly half of all mobile devices in the U.S. will have security apps by 2018.

BYOD makes managing your company's network security challenging because, instead a network's access points being limited to an organization's workstations, a network administrator now has to manage twice the number of access points thanks to the added BYOD devices. Also, because all of these new access points are outside the wired control of network admins, network security becomes even more difficult. One also has to consider the nightmare scenario of a BYOD device becoming lost or stolen, which can put an entire business at risk.

To better understand how prepared IT professionals are for the increasing amount of risks brought about by the BYOD trend, Ponemon Institute did a recent survey of IT professionals concerning mobile security. They found that mobile security is going to challenge IT professionals for years to come.
71% of respondents say endpoint security threats have become more difficult to stop or mitigate in the past two years.
Hackers are very much aware of this BYOD trend and they're concentrating their mobile efforts accordingly. This mobile hacking trend has been steadily increasing for years, and as more online purchases are made with mobile devices and more businesses share sensitive files over mobile networks, it's a guarantee that hackers will be getting in on this mobile action.
68% say their mobile devices have been targeted by malware in the past year.
This is a shockingly high statistic, made even more shocking when you consider that 68% is only the number of reported mobile malware attacks. Many viruses go undetected, and there's another type of malware that sits dormant on a device, just waiting to be activated by a remote command given by its hacker creator.
41% say their enterprise has 50 or more malware attacks a month.
This equates to multiple malware attacks per day! As a rule, adding more BYOD devices to your company's technology repertoire will increase the amount of malware attacks on your business.

BYOD is not without its own unique network security risks, but these risks shouldn't scare away an organization that wants to benefit from BYOD. The risks of BYOD can be managed so that companies can enjoy increased employee productivity and satisfaction. As the manager of your business, you will have to determine if these benefits outweigh the risks, and if BYOD is therefore worth the extra security effort.

Computerware can help you weigh the benefits vs. the risks of BYOD by taking time to go over your company's computing needs and your options for mobile computing. For example, it may be less risky to provide your staff with company-owned mobile devices so that you can better manage network security. You can also take advantage of cloud storage solutions to safeguard your company's data in case a BYOD device is ever lost or stolen.

To get your business in on this industry-changing BYOD trend in a way that will best protect your company, give Computerware a call at (703) 821-8200.