Mobile Access: Get on the Right Road to Security

Mobility is a disruptive technology. It’s disrupting the old order (users accessing resources from one place, through one point of access) and replacing it with convenient anytime-anywhere access. Yes, anywhere-anytime makes employees more productive and your business more agile. But there’s a dark side to disruption: the changing traditional perimeter around the organization, which creates risks ranging from infected apps to lost devices that fall into the wrong hands.

But there’s good news. You can take command of your mobile security by rethinking your mobile security strategy, particularly around identity. With the answers to just 5 questions, you’ll be better prepared to reap the benefits of mobility without compromising security.

1.      Do You Know Who Your Mobile Users Are?

Mobile users want convenient access anywhere, anytime, from any device. How do you know, though, that the person on a smartphone is the authorized user? After all, many organizations utilize only native password protection as a mobile security measure. And only about one-third proactively remove corporate data from mobile devices when users leave. Reduce your risk of compromised credentials with an authentication solution that uses anomaly detection, machine learning, and other capabilities to ensure users are who they say they are.

2.      Are You Making It Easy for Users to Work Securely?

The growth of consumer applications on mobile devices is resetting the bar for user expectations around convenient access. This creates pressure for organizations to implement consumer-based authentication methods such as push notifications and biometrics. After all, once you get used to Touch ID, the last thing you want to do is go back to memorizing a complex 30-digit password that changes every week.

3.      What Are You Doing to Discourage Risky Behavior?

According to Ponemon Institute’s State of Mobile Application Insecurity study, 55% of organizations allow employees to download business apps on their personally owned devices, and 39% allow employees to use personal mobile apps on company-assigned devices. That’s fine – as long as you educate users about risky behaviors associated with personal devices. These include reusing personal passwords for corporate apps and tapping into unsecured Wi-Fi networks to access corporate systems.

4.      How Can You Avoid the Risk of Mobile Malware?

The Ponemon study also revealed that developers often neglect security when building mobile apps, “potentially exposing their customers’ data because they don’t scan the code for vulnerabilities.” Their reasons include rush-to-release pressures, a lack of QA and testing, and a lack of clear security requirements. Be sure to bump up your focus on mobile security to avoid positioning apps for higher security risks.

5.      Are You Ready to Reimagine Your Mobile Security?

Successfully taking security “on the road” comes down to two fundamental questions: are your users who they say they are, and do they have the right access? Modern authentication solutions offer a comprehensive set of capabilities – including access management, multi-factor authentication, and risk analytics – to answer these questions with confidence. Learn more at rsa.com/securid.

Today’s modern solutions provide multiple convenient and secure ways to authenticate all of your users, analyze their behavior and context, and assure that the right individuals have the right levels of access – from anywhere and any device.

The bottom line? If you want to be confident that users are indeed who they say they are, have convenient access to what they should, and compliance is tracked to minimize risk, start with a security solution that protects your mobile endpoints against identity threats with convenient AND secure access.

Talk with an RSA security expert today. Better yet, visit RSA.COM/TRYSECURID to sign up for a free trial.