One Comment
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Enjoyed the article. Couple thoughts came to mind.
One tried and true way for IT to protect the device and data is to force a VPN connection on any internet connection as you mentioned. The rapid adoption of SaaS based applications as well as corporate e-mail (minus VPN requirements) may actually encourage end users to not launch IPSEC or SSL VPN’s. IT also has fewer reasons to have the VPN tunnel since users can get what they need without a tunnel. Main driver now being security.
I see companies taking an alternate approach to maximize productivity and minimize security risks.
They are deploying tools which ensure the device’s security posture is healthy in real-time, all the time. Knowing that anti-virus, anti-spyware, personal firewall, operating system patching, common windows applications such as Adobe, JAVA, etc are all up-to-date and functional. Knowing everything is “in corporate compliance” they no longer force a VPN connection on every connection. Granted, this is not guaranteed to protection against zero-day threats. For that, they may make sure they have a security application that protects in this area as well. Thus trying to strike the balance of security, productivity, and of course…happy end users!
Did I mention that I’ve been a Lakers fan since I could dribble?
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There’s No Free Coffee in Enterpise Mobility
So as you may have heard, Starbucks, the wunderkind of overly roasted coffee beans (I prefer Lavazza) will now offer you free WiFi connectivity at their stores. Given how many Starbucks coffee shops there are in this world (can you believe they even have them in my home town of Paris, France???), this is a non-negligeable event. Free WiFi when you are traveling and drinking your much needed “double mocha latte venti non fat with whip…and soy milk.” By the way, I have no idea what the hell that drink could possibly be, but I am sure someone has ordered it….with their WiFi.
But did they have a secure connection for their WiFi? Probably not.
Free WiFi is great – no question. It’s certainly better than paying the egregious prices that you will see in a hotel. However, “free” comes with a price. For that matter, any public WiFi comes with a price. It’s insecure. No VPN tunnel, no SSL makes this enterprise mobility enthusiast worried. How are you going to ensure that your employees are going to do what they need to do to mitigate information and/or data loss prevention/protection? This isn’t even a cost control issue (it is by the way, because like I said, why pay for WiFI when you don’t have to.)
You, dear mobility manager, need to find ways to make your employees maximize free WiFi (because it’s free – duh) and yet ensure that things are done securely. Sure, you can tell them to run their VPN as soon as they log in, but that won’t happen ALL the time. Is there a way you could actually give them free connectivity AND ensure that they can have a secure connection. That would be a good thing.
By the way, don’t think this just applies to your laptops. This is also very relevant to your mobile devices that have 802.11g connectivity (and they will soon have 802.11n). The point being, irrespective of what kinds of WiFI networks your company uses…free, public or private…you must make sure that your corporate IT and business policies have been enforced so that your employees are doing what you are expecting regardless of where they are working from.