Mobile Device Security is a Moving Target
As businesses mobilize their workforces and processes the volume and variety of sensitive data passing through and sitting on mobile devices increases dramatically. Even though the business owner or IT manager may recognize the importance of mobile data and device security, doing something useful about it is altogether another issue. New considerations enter into the picture frequently, turning mobile security into a moving target. Protecting the business – the organization, its employees and its customers – requires adopting mobile security strategies that cover a broad range of issues.
First of all, is there any means of monitoring the activities of the connected or mobile devices? Knowing which devices are interacting with your information would seem to be an essential part of business information security, yet smartphones and tablet devices often fall under the proverbial radar of IT or business management. Actually, business management is likely among the base of users with the very mobile devices in question.
Are there ways to limit what information is accessible via these mobile devices, and is that data encrypted? Consider also that data is sometimes at rest (like when it is just sitting on a hard drive) and sometimes in transit (like being uploaded/downloaded/transmitted over the wire). In either state, the data should be encrypted in order to be more secure.
Is there a standard set of apps or services that users can enable, or is it pretty much personal choice? Too often a user will innocently install a malicious app on their device, exposing the business to a variety of potential threats. Creating strict policies around app selection and use is a really good idea, and finding a way to actually enforce them is even better.
The big issue is separation of work and personal apps and content. Especially in small businesses where personal devices are the norm (well, not just in small business… Hey Hillary!) it is quite a challenge to create any useful separation between personal and business use. The mobile device is often adopted as a personal choice of the user – who elects to invest their personal mobile device in their work – so exacting any real level of control in how the device is used is tough. The security of the information is only as good as the security of the device, meaning that it is usually up to the device owner to decide if a password or pin is required. Unfortunately and for the sake of convenience, there is often little or no real security on the device meaning there is no real security around the information on the device in the event that it becomes lost, stolen or compromised.
There are a lot of things that the business can do in order to improve the security of their business data in a mobile device environment. Here are a few of the basics:
- Have defined procedures for what happens when a device is lost or stolen; make sure they’re followed
- Have a way to do a remote wipe of the device
- Make sure all devices lock after a period of inactivity, and that they have password or pin protection
- Have a mobile device use policy, and make sure all employees understand why it matters and agree to it.
Make Sense?
J
In today’s business world, risk, uncertainty and volatility are just par for the course – everyday realities of simply being in business. Nothing is certain, they say, except death and taxes. Yet there is a fine art to driving profitable growth in a business, and adapting to existing and emerging risk takes a great deal of experience, information and agility. While planning and process development may occur at many levels within the organization, it is the FP&A (financial planning and analysis) capability which helps top performing businesses be top performers.
In most regions around the country high-speed broadband is readily available, and using the Internet for working and playing online is a part of everyday life. Facebook and Twitter and Instagram are household names and just about every conversation starts or ends with a reference to a 
Make Sense?
Doing more with less is the mantra of today’s business. Hiring more people or throwing money at a problem is almost never the best way to solve it… even if there are people and dollars to throw. Businesses are feeling the crunch today more than ever, in some part due to advancements in technology and the emergence of retail and “self-service” service. Once upon a time it was OK to be a fat dumb and happy business, but those days are long gone. With competitive pressures increasing – and emerging from new sources – just about every business is feeling the need to trim some fat – cutting costs and streamlining processes even as customer demand increases.
Information technology and the “cloud” is amazing. With the right IT resources and connectivity, individuals and small businesses are able to compete at global levels with much larger organizations, and are proving that placing focus and attention on the right aspects of the business helps the business perform better. The right IT approach is to use technology to make the business smarter so more gets done in less time and with fewer resources – this is wearing the bunny slippers. The goal is leveraging systems, software and connectivity to be more efficient and effective, creating the time to stop and think for a while, innovate, or simply relax.
When I first started my business, like many start-up operations, I decided to 
When Intuit introduced QuickBooks Online, however, the tried-and-true solution known as “QuickBooks” became something very different at first glance, creating the need to educate the market about the continuing existence of desktop QuickBooks products as well as the newer online QuickBooks product. Differentiation of the two is not really the “desktop” versus “online” moniker – Commercial Hosts for QuickBooks, who essentially 
