Mobile devices contain sensitive information that must be protected. PDA’s and laptops typically hold a wide range of corporate and personal data much of which is protected by the Data Protection Act. The cost of losing this data is more than the cost of the device! Loss of reputation through the unauthorised disclosure of sensitive information is particularly damaging, as The Woolwich Building Society have just experienced, So, what is sensitive data?

Simple passwords are not enough

Most PDA’s are shipped with some data security typically in the form of a user password. But these systems are easily broken and/are often subject to bypassing by the end-user.

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The mobile device problem will not go away. Huge growth in mobile device use is expected – The demand for mobile devices (PD’s, laptops. Smartphones, tablet PC’s etc) will grow dramatically over the next 18 months. Organisations are looking to boost user productivity by providing access to corporate systems while on the move.

The Security buck stops here

IT Managers are expected to provide effective security and manage the risks of mobile systems. Mobile computing introduces several new risks including loss of data (laptop is stolen), and unauthorised disclosure (data is eavesdropped while communicating).

Mobile Security is different

The traditional perception of IT security is the deployment of the firewall. This was an entry level approach 5 years ago, but times and environments change. Five years ago, the majority of data traffic was transmitted via cable and passed through the central firewall. Nowadays, data can be moved via a number of means – including wireless transmission and USB data sticks, all of which of course bypasses the firewall. Few companies are protected.

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Another burden for the overworked IT department

IT Department’s are busy places. Many ‘business efficiency’ studies ignore the start-up and ongoing manpower resources needed to implement systems. Managing PDA’s and smartphones is no exception. Most firms do not know the number of PDA’s or smartphones in use. Many are purchased on company ‘expense accounts’ and are not centrally asset tracked. Few can monitor and control what data is accessed and more importantly what data is allowed on the mobile device. This is a serious risk. But implementing controls to manage these new devices must be efficient and minimise the use of manpower.

Need for simplification

It seems that every new security vulnerability requires a new security product. IT Managers are adding a plethora of systems to manage security risks but each system needs its own resources. Management is becoming a nightmare. Managing the mobile threat is no different. The overhead to train staff and users must be minimised; Mobile controls should ideally be provided a limed number of products.

New platforms, new risks

Mobile devices are used to access and store sensitive and confidential data. This data is vulnerable to unauthorised disclosure.

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