{"id":2160,"date":"2017-05-04T09:56:29","date_gmt":"2017-05-04T14:56:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.stratospherenetworks.com\/blog\/?p=2160"},"modified":"2018-06-26T12:03:54","modified_gmt":"2018-06-26T17:03:54","slug":"12-steps-make-infrastructure-secure-safeguard-mobile-devices","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.stratospherenetworks.com\/blog\/12-steps-make-infrastructure-secure-safeguard-mobile-devices\/","title":{"rendered":"12 Steps to Make Your IT Infrastructure More Secure: Safeguard Mobile Devices"},"content":{"rendered":"

\"mobile<\/a>Most Americans (77%) now own a smartphone, up from just 35% in 2011, according to the Pew Research Center<\/a>. Additionally, about half of American adults own tablet computers. As mobile device ownership has become the norm, smartphones and tablets have made their way into the workplace.<\/p>\n

The practice of using personal mobile devices at the office to access company data presents a new set of cybersecurity risks. Your IT infrastructure isn\u2019t truly safeguarded against IT security threats unless you\u2019ve accounted for and taken steps to protect mobile devices<\/a> and other endpoints<\/a>.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s why the 11th<\/sup> step in our process for ensuring your IT infrastructure is secure involves protecting mobile devices and other endpoints from malicious parties and software looking to gain unauthorized access to your company\u2019s network. Before we explore this topic, however, here are the previous steps, in case you want to review them:<\/p>\n

1. Performing a security audit<\/a><\/p>\n

2. Creating and enforcing IT security policies<\/a><\/p>\n

3. Updating your anti-virus solution<\/a><\/p>\n

4. Updating workstations and servers<\/a><\/p>\n

5. Guarding your email with a hosted spam solution<\/a><\/p>\n

6. Implementing a hosted DNS solution<\/a><\/p>\n

7. Updating your firewall<\/a><\/p>\n

8. Implementing a backup solution<\/a><\/p>\n

9. Auditing your servers<\/a><\/p>\n

10. Securing your WiFi<\/a><\/p>\n

Mobility and Vulnerability
\n<\/strong>Many businesses have embraced the growing popularity of mobile devices by adopting \u201cbring your own device<\/a>\u201d (BYOD) policies, which allow employees to bring in their own smartphones, tablets, and other mobile gadgets and use them to complete projects. Although a BYOD plan could lower your organization\u2019s technology costs since workers supply some of their own tech tools, allowing personal devices in the office creates a bunch of new points of vulnerability where security is concerned.<\/p>\n

Here are some questions and scenarios you\u2019ll want to consider regarding mobile devices and security risks:<\/p>\n

1. What happens if a device that has sensitive corporate data on it gets lost?<\/p>\n

2. What if an employee leaves the company and takes their personal devices (still containing company data) with them?<\/p>\n

3. What if an employee uses their mobile device to access a non-secure\/non-corporate network? This could happen, for example, if they use public WiFi to access the Internet while at a coffee shop. People looking to gain unauthorized access to sensitive data could do so through the unsecured network.<\/p>\n

Mobile and Endpoint Security Solutions
\n<\/strong>To reduce your risk of potentially disastrous data breaches, it\u2019s important to implement comprehensive security policies and educate your employees on best practices<\/a> to keep their smartphones and other devices as safe as possible from cyber criminals. For example, everyone should implement a password\/passcode lock for their devices. There are also apps and features available that can let users remotely wipe their devices.<\/p>\n

Additionally, your business can add an extra layer of protection with endpoint security solutions<\/a>. There are a number of next-generation endpoint protection products available, including the following:<\/p>\n