30 May 2008

Mobile Devices Raise Security Concerns

John Sterlicchi, US Bureau Chief,

As mobile devices like the iPhone and BlackBerry become increasingly popular among end users, enterprises are worried about ensuring the security of their data.

“Enterprises are fighting a losing battle against employees when it comes to mobile devices and they should consider supporting a limited selection of devices rather than banning them outright,” said Daniel Okubo, technology analyst of Datamonitor and author of a report called Enterprise Mobility: Trend Analysis to 2012.

The report predicts global enterprise expenditure on mobile devices will grow from $6 bn today to an estimated $17 bn by 2012.

Traditionally enterprises have allocated devices, such as the Blackberry, to employees to enable them to check their email and be in contact when they are away from the office.

Enterprises are now finding that employees want to be able to integrate their personal device with their corporate email account and other applications.

According to Okubo, very few IT departments have yielded to these requests and are refusing to be responsible for managing such a wide variety of mobile devices.

“There is an element of fear of the unknown,” Okubo said. “Enterprises question how security will be managed and whether mobility technologies will fit into their current IT infrastructure. Security has been rated the greatest barrier to adoption of mobility deployments.”

The report also found the iPhone has set a new standard for device userability and the trend of consumerization is going to continue.

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