What is Mobile Device Management? Sean Huggett Voyager Networks

The World is Going Mobile

Mobile statistics from Cisco • 70% increase in mobile data traffic in 2012

• 96% growth if mobiles connected to Wi-Fi are included

• Mobile data traffic in 2012 greater than all internet traffic in 2000

Mobility is a hot topic in the workplace – see this infographic from Cisco

Mobility in the Workplace

Benefits

• 50% of employees believe mobile devices improve work/life balance

• 40% feel mobility gives them control over how/when/where they work

• 30% use mobile devices to stay in touch with colleagues

• 21% access time-critical information

• 20% use them to improve customer experience

• 50% of mobile enabled workers have increased productivity in the last 2 yrs

Mobile Device Challenges • BYO: Device, App & Cloud: Fragmentation

• Mobile user error and omission: – Many thousands of users leave their mobile devices at airports each year

– 37% of users haven’t activated their auto-lock feature

– 48% log-on to unsecure wireless networks with work devices

– 46% of users allow other people to use their devices

– 55% of users have sent work emails to personal mobile devices

– 33% of users admit that work files on personal devices are not encrypted

Mobile Device Management

• MDM is not the only answer to BYOD security and usability

• Incorporate MDM into a Unified Access model, together with: – Network Security

– Secure Remote Access

– Network Access Control

• Technology is only part of the overall solution

• Four elements to good MDM: 1. Strategy

2. Policy

3. Education & Understanding

4. Technology

Strategy

• Don’t just embrace BYOD/Mobility and purchase an MDM application

• Start with a firm strategy - begin with the end in mind

• Consider:

– What do you want to achieve from Mobility?

• Productivity increases?

• Cost savings?

• Employee satisfaction?

• Other goals?

– How can you best reach these goals?

– Do you want to issue standard devices, adopt CYOD, BYOD or some of each?

– What applications will be obligatory, supported and prohibited?

– Will you provide ubiquitous mobile access or different access levels to different users?

– How will IT provide support?

Policy

• Build out clear policy for Mobility & MDM based on your Strategy

• Clarity and transparency are important – especially around prohibited devices

• Consider including: – Procedures for requesting products and services, including support

– Details of what support (if any) is provided, when and how

– Guidelines on purchasing and registering appropriate equipment

– Guidelines on appropriate and inappropriate behaviour and the penalties

– Clarification on who owns what data and how corporate data may be accessed

• Keep an inventory of mobile hardware and services in use by users: – Even in BYOD environments

– Prudent to know who is using what in case vulnerabilities are identified

– Enables IT to ensure that devices have all relevant security updates applied

– Helps manage IT provided services

– Consider proactively contacting users every 6 months

Education & Understanding

• Engage & educate to help users understand the strategy and policy

• Once the policy is in place, it needs to be communicated, monitored and enforced

• Human nature being what it is, effective communication can limit the need for enforcement

• The highest degree of security depends on the awareness of users, rather than on any particular platform or technology

• The easiest way to get user attention is to offer a variety of training delivery channels, all available in bite-sized chunks

Technology

• Use MDM technology to enforce compliance and act as the last line of defence

• There are numerous MDM technologies and applications on the market

• The 2013 Gartner Magic Quadrant on MDM solutions puts MobileIron, Airwatch, Citrix and Good Technology among the leaders

• Non-MDM vendors are also adding MDM capabilities to their core offering, eg:

– Cisco Meraki wireless includes MDM capabilities

– Upcoming release of Windows 8.1 Enterprise will include MDM features

• Review several MDM platforms and consumption models

• Evaluate functionality, ease of use, TCO, integration with existing infrastructure and cross platform device support

• Most MDM vendors offer a trial or pilot - so try before you buy

• Keep strategy and policy in mind during the evaluation process

Final Thoughts

As a final note, it is crucial that senior management are thoroughly educated on the issues of mobile devices, not only is it helpful to have their support for mobile device

management but it helps to avoid the embarrassment of senior management compromising security themselves through lack of awareness

Sean Huggett is the Managing Director of Voyager Networks, a specialist provider of Cloud, Mobility, Communication & Security Solutions and Managed Services. For more on this subject please read the full blog and other blogs in our “What is…” series. To learn more about Voyager Networks, please visit our website where you can find more about us or follow-us using the social icons in this presentation.

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