Tag: BYOD

BYOD Hybrid environment | Cybersecurity

Creating a smarter Bring Your Own Device Hybrid environment

Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) in our modern-day hybrid environment has become a common workplace policy around the world.

With many employees now working from home and the office, they choose to use the latest tablets and laptops without the limitations of having a company-issued device.

A BYOD culture also reduces technology costs enabling employees to work on devices that they are already comfortable with, whilst the cloud makes it easy to access data from anywhere. However, the flexibility that this policy brings also creates the potential for cyberattacks.

If it leaves the office, it’s a risk

Devices that are taken home and used for personal tasks can significantly increase the chances of a data leak or breach, simply because we use them to communicate with people outside of the sphere of work.

To effectively manage a Bring Your Own Device policy it’s essential to identify the risks involved and secure every device used for productivity purposes in your business – no matter where it happens to be or who owns it.

Your IT network doesn’t end at the front door anymore

One of the biggest challenges to do with managing a BYOD policy is device security – especially if your business has moved to a  hybrid working model.

Tablets and laptops scattered across the city, the country, or possibly even the world are processing proprietary data that belongs to your company.

More devices and more locations equals more risks from a cybersecurity point of view. As a security conscious business owner, you’ll need to follow these systematic steps to secure your devices:

  • Do a device audit. Every employee should provide the company with the make, model, and serial number of the device they use at work and update the IT manager if they change devices.
  • Install data security software. Any device used to connect to your company network or shared storage needs to have a firewall, antivirus, and enhanced data security software up and running.
  • Use two factor authentication. Devices should be set up for two factor logins to your network via email or biometrics.
  • Train and educate device users thoroughly. Key to a secure BYOD environment is a set of policies for the end-users, your staff. Your team should be constantly aware of cyberthreats – including social engineering attacks – and take measures to avoid data leaks and breaches.

By blending the flexibility of BYOD with a careful approach to cybersecurity, you’ll have fewer worries when your team accesses company data on the move.

Keep decentralised data safe in the cloud

With BYOD in a hybrid environment an affordable and secure online cloud backup programme is essential. Soteria Cloud is proud to offer businesses a range of secure cloud storage packages featuring fully encrypted backup. To ensure that your data is safe in the cloud, browse our website today.

The Challenges of Mobile Device Management in a BYOD Culture

Office spaces are out, and Cloud business spaces are in! With so many businesses turning to cloud computing and remote-based services, there’s been a definite demand for high-quality mobile devices. And when a company has a BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) culture, there’s a need for strategic mobile device management.

Why Businesses Need Mobile Device Management Systems

The reason good mobile device management strategies are in high demand is because employees can become wary about using their personal devices for business activities. There are all sorts of privacy issues involved, and of course, employees might not want additional individuals having access to their personal communications. Much the same, businesses don’t want sensitive information being accessed or shared from private devices used for business purposes.

Cloud technology is going nowhere, and because of the convenience of being able to work on the go, BYOD business cultures are not about to change. The simple fact is that often, employees are going to need to use their personal devices for business purposes. The only answer is to come up with mobile device management solutions that are optimal for both employer and employee.

What makes for a “good” mobile device management strategy and how does a company go about setting one in place? A good mobile device management strategy is one that focuses on two key areas: privacy and safety.

4 Steps to Implementing a Decent Mobile Device Management System

Below are four steps to implementing a mobile device management system that keeps employees satisfied without compromising on business processes and security.

Step 1: Draw up an “acceptable use” policy
Create a document that fully covers the guidelines for using a personal device at work. It should detail the device on-boarding process, passwords and device locks, network usage, encryption, backups, and even the process for device management when an employee leaves the employ of the company.

You cannot be thorough enough with an acceptable use policy, so take your time to ensure that you have covered all bases. You also need to ensure that you are constantly reminding your employees of how to securely use their own devices for work purposes. The acceptable use policy should be issued to every employee and displayed at the workplace.

Step 2: Choose apps and software that stores off-device
Some apps and software are essential to the functioning of your business. To protect sensitive data belonging to your business, opt for professional apps and software programs that store information and data in the cloud rather than on the device. This is probably one of the most important steps in a mobile device management process.

When installing apps on devices, it is important to ensure that passwords are generated for staff members, and it is a good idea to ensure that they expire and need to be re-assigned every month.

Step 3: Be strict about access restrictions
It might seem like a convenience to allow all employees to access all system settings and information shared in the cloud, but this is a serious security risk. Restrict employee access to areas that are essential to their core function and allow absolutely nothing else. This is not about trust between the company and employees, but more about avoiding the risk of accidental data breaches or employees being careless with their devices which can result in sensitive information making its way into the wrong hands.

Step 4: Partner with the right service provider
Managing mobile devices is something that needs to be done consistently. This means that you need to keep up to date with the latest systems and also need to be aware of the most recent risks that face your business.

Your chosen mobile device management service provider should have systems in place that can detect when something unauthorised or suspicious is happening on business accounts via employee devices. These systems can implement multi-phase security authorisation, detect the presence of malware and pick up on a variety of other suspicious activities or system access behaviours. The right mobile device management service provider will keep you informed of just how secure your devices and system are.

Last Word

At Soteria Cloud, we have encountered businesses that have fallen victim to the negative impact of a poor or non-existent mobile device management policy. If you want to protect your business, take the four steps above to implement a rock-solid mobile device management system that complements your business operations.