Ever since the COVID-19 pandemic accelerated remote working, employees have become even more reliant on mobile devices to conduct business. When employees are working outside of the office network, security can be difficult to control, and to compensate business leaders rushed to adjust security strategies to accommodate work-from-home policies centered mostly around access and connectivity by desktops and laptops. However, during this rapid transition period, a majority of companies failed to prioritize the security of their employees’ mobile devices – a key piece of equipment for any “work from anywhere” user.
Verizon recently released their 2021 Mobile Security Index, which surveyed 876 senior professionals in charge of the procurement, management and security of mobile devices. It’s full of great data, but a couple of the biggest things that stuck out were : 40% of respondents said that mobile devices are the biggest IT security threat and 53% said that mobile-device-related security compromises were major. One doesn’t need to be a security or IT professional to know these stats are significant and concerning.
With mobile threats proliferating at an alarming rate and enterprises still struggling to find a complete solution to prevent them, it’s time we take a look at some of the top mobile threats as outlined by Verizon and how SyncDog can help:
Risky Mobile Apps
With the abundance of malicious apps being offered to naïve end-users along with the privacy concerns with mainstream mobile applications, such as TikTok and WhatsApp, employers are having to go to great lengths to keep employees from downloading them. This strategy is flawed. The approach doesn’t account for malicious apps that are still undiscovered and also does not ensure that employees won’t download apps they want to use regardless of the directive. Verizon found that 45% percent of organizations that prohibit the use of social media on company devices were aware that employees used it anyway. On the other end of the spectrum, 31% of Verizon’s survey respondents claimed to have relaxed restrictions on installing new apps as part of their response to COVID-19 due to increased usage of personally owned (BYOD) devices.
The SyncDog Difference: SyncDog provides enterprises with an encrypted, containerized application workspace for devices used for business – no matter if they are personally owned or company owned. If an employee downloads an app outside of the container for personal use or the like, and that app ends up being malicious, the company/government data within the container remains isolated from whatever malicious action the app tries to impose. Additionally, SyncDog offers clients all the management tools and insight necessary to scale up a secure, App Store-based delivery model for distributing enterprise apps, both public and private.
Insecure Wi-Fi Networks
When employees are enabled to work-from-anywhere, it’s safe to assume that they will be connecting to public Wi-Fi networks. Public Wi-Fi networks are notorious for being insecure as there are a plethora of dangers associated with connecting to them. Verizon found that 92% of respondents weren’t taking any technical measures to block the use of public Wi-Fi, despite the risks.
The SyncDog Difference: Making sure data encryption is deployed on employees’ devices is imperative in these situations. SyncDog’s mobile workplace is protected through a FIPS 140-2 certified, AES 256-bit encrypted application. With SyncDog, businesses will have peace of mind knowing that their enterprise data is secure at rest, and in transit, even if employees are working on compromised public networks or non-secure environments.
Increase in Phishing Attacks
Mobile workers are extremely vulnerable to phishing attacks. Hackers are able to craft phishing campaigns that can target end users via email, text messages and voicemail. Verizon’s report found that phishing attacks increased 364% in 2020 compared to 2019. Hackers are using social engineering tactics to fool even the most security conscious, making it easier for them to find success.
The SyncDog Difference: SyncDog separates personal and corporate data and stores corporate data within a secure container that cannot be accessed by unauthorized personnel. Even when an entire device is compromised, enterprises can be assured that corporate data within the container is safe. Additionally, SyncDog has partnered with some of the leading Mobile Threat Defense (MTD) organizations to protect against malware and increase visibility into emerging mobile threats and risks that put organization’s data in jeopardy.
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In today’s threat landscape, it’s imperative to implement solutions that help your organization stay ahead of adversaries. Implementing SyncDog’s end-to-end mobile security solution will ensure that your mobile workforce is empowered to conduct work securely from wherever they are and on whichever device they choose. To learn more about SyncDog’s Secure.Systems, request a demo today!
