This is another one of the classic “it depends” business issue. There are many different business, use and cost justifications that will support all of the different app security models. The question is which one(s) are right for your business model and which one(s) will gain the most traction in the market allowing the vendor [...]

Well said. A few other points that everyone should consider as the mobility management acronym debate rages. MDM does more than enforce device security. It is also used to configure device settings such as Wi-Fi, VPN and email so that it is easier to configure and deploy devices in large numbers without making the user [...]

I agree that security and risk management are critical, but believe that there is a bit of a “Can’t see the forrest for the trees” issue here. Let me start by way of a story: A few years ago I had a discussion with a mobility expert from the NSA who was emphatic that the [...]

Always good to start the day off with a good laugh. The point that you raise is a very important one. The overuse and misuse of the term MDM is now leading to a lot of “buyers remorse” as folks realize all of the questions that they should have asked before they bought the product. [...]

An Industry Working Group is needed to make sure that: 1)consumer privacy rights are protected in a consistent and standardized way 2) enterprise data (which is also consumer information in many cases) is protected 3) product innovation and free market dynamics are both protected and encouraged You are just the person to make that happen [...]

I would love to see the monthly revenue figures for the store over the next six months to see if they get the ROI that they are expecting. The nice thing about software is that it can always be updated and improved.

I agree with your basic premise, but I think that everyone keeps getting tangled in the “one size fits all” issue. A significant portion of mobility is about flexibility and freedom, which means that there will not be an absolute solution for anyone but the most fringe use cases. Now that I have that caveat [...]

Very true. There is some action from the Government to force realtime notification of potential issues. Check out this article:

http://www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/10/fcc-ctia-bill-shock-guidelines/

It doesn’t solve the entire challenge, but it is a significant step in the right direction.

Amen. Device ownership doesn’t matter, data ownership is everything.

Managing an individually liable device is the exact same as managing a corporate liable device. The only thing that changes is scale and diversity, but that issue can’t be avoided since it is all about the data and access to the data.

Chaos, complete chaos. The form factors are going to continue to change and evolve so that smartphones and tablets are only the tip of the iceberg. Why doesn’t my car navigation system have access to my calendar and next meeting location? Why can’t I access my corporate systems via my TV at home? Maybe these [...]

Why the intense desire to force people to choose one over the other? It seems to me that prices are in the range where you can have multiple devices and use the one that is most appropriate for the activity and environment. People will have multiple devices as a rule, not as the exception. Therefore [...]

I am all for personal responsibility, but I don’t think that it is fair or possible to ask someone to be personally responsible about something which they have no knowledge and in some cases no control. Most people don’t know how to look at the data integrity or collection habits of an application that they [...]

You are absolutely right, they are very different. They are related and dependent items, but very distinct.

Unfortunately most of the market does not see it that way and so Perception becomes Reality. In a moment of weakness I gave in to the Perception…

I would highly encourage you and everyone else to hold all of the MDM vendors (BoxTone included) to account for these capabilities. They are necessary to fully solve the security and management challenge. Customers will figure it out sooner or later. I believe that sooner is better for everyone

This is where not all MDM products are created equal. Most MDM (not all) use AD for basic Authentication (checks that you are a user in the system). Once you go beyond Authentication things are not as clear. Some examples: Authorization – do you use AD to determine what the User, Device and Application is [...]

It is, but I make the distinction because there are large parts of mobility management (infrastructure, incident and problem mgmt) that are not Policy related and therefore not tied to Directory Services. Then there are parts of mobility management, such as Mobile User Service Quality and Support, that are connected to Policy, but also depend [...]

You are absolutely correct that real time, direct (no manual intervention) integrtion with Directory Services are central to Mobility Management, but even more so for Mobile Security. Much of mobile security is really DATA MANAGEMENT. What data are you allowed/not allowed to access, when and how are you allowed to access the data, under what [...]

I like where you are going with this and would add a few other thoughts. 1) Trustworthy computing is in the eye of the beholder. It will vary by Enterprise/Group, Individual, Device and Application. The 4 elements are a minimum and for some there will be more (connection method, encryption level,…), which means that you [...]

I believe that a very dangerous game is being played by many MDM vendors and it is the customer that will ultimately pay the price. There is a difference between Data Security and Device Management. Just because an MDM vendor can lock and wipe a device does not automatically mean that they can also secure [...]

I think that there will be a small swing back to corporate owned devices due to more corporate apps on tablets and the inevitable over reach of any new trend. However I think that it will be relatively minor when compared to the massive ongoing wave of employee owned devices. My bet is that 80% [...]