The Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) Dilemma

The use of personal mobile devices like smartphones and tablets in the workplace, known as “bring your own device” (BYOD), has become ubiquitous. But this perceived convenience and flexibility comes at a substantial cost — significantly escalated security risks and vulnerabilities for organizations if not managed thoughtfully and deliberately.

While foundational security practices exist that can help mitigate BYOD risks, many companies fail to implement these with adequate rigor in their hasty rush to adopt and support BYOD policies. Therefore, they overlook and leave unaddressed critical dangers that can lead to harmful data breaches, noncompliance penalties, and substantial reputational damage if a BYOD-related security incident occurs.

The Multitude of Security Threats Introduced by BYOD

BYOD introduces a multitude of worrisome security concerns that organizations must thoroughly evaluate and address in a proactive, comprehensive manner. When employees are granted access to internal corporate networks and data through personal mobile devices not controlled or managed by the IT department, organizations relinquish visibility and control over securing sensitive information.

Confidential corporate data winds up dispersed across thousands of poorly protected personal smartphones, tablets, laptops, and other consumer-grade devices over which the company has little governance once beyond the network perimeter. Every lost, stolen or improperly secured BYOD endpoint represents a potential nightmare data breach scenario that could lead to unauthorized access of sensitive business data, intellectual property, customer information, financial reports, competitive strategies, and more.

Outdated BYOD devices riddled with unpatched vulnerabilities provide tantalizing easy targets for external cybercriminals seeking to infiltrate....

Author

Pranshu Ranakoti