Security - at the core of enterprise mobile workforce management

Security is sometimes an afterthought when deploying a mobile solution; however, corporations are quickly realizing that information risk management is increasingly viewed as a business enabler and a vital integrated component of their mobile solutions. As corporations adopt the competitive advantages of sharing information wirelessly in real time, they must face the responsibility of ensuring the confidentiality, integrity and availability of this evolutionary media.

Failure to deploy and maintain a robust mobile security framework and program can pose serious security risks to critical information on mobile devices or the enterprise network and may also hamper a company’s business dealings with its customers. Elements of a security solution should include:

• Governance, policies and compliance
• User authentication, including strong password policies, timeout and expiration options Device authentication
• Anti-virus/anti-malware software and firewalls installed on all devices
• LAN access security to prohibit unauthorized access to network systems while allowing authorized users to connect
• Encryption, including file-level, application-level and full-disk encryption
• Remote lock and wipe of lost or stolen devices
• Wireless deployment and updating of security policies, software, patches, etc. Centralized management of all security functions
• Backup and recovery of data and applications to enterprise servers or secure offsite locations

If you need help designing and deploying your organization’s wireless security solution, there are a number of consulting companies that can help you. There are also software solution providers that integrate most or all of these elements, some with device management components (see next section) to enable overall control over the organization’s device inventory.