How Device Management Platforms Ensure Privacy In A Company

The trend with BYOD or “Bring Your Own Device” has helped increase the efficiency of employees while decreasing equipment costs. However, it is not great when it comes to managed services providers or MSPs which requires wrangling various devices. Aside from wrangling multiple devices, there are also some associated risks. When employees hook up with their company’s network using their smartphones or laptops, they unwittingly create a tract for security, connectivity, and privacy issues unless they’re managed properly. This is why device management platforms are heavily needed in this sector.

Some of the common BYOD devices are smartphones and tablets that are less secure than many laptops because they’re often not protected in the same way. While software like anti-malware apps is becoming more prevalent, it’s still nowhere near as ubiquitous because it is mostly for laptops or desktops. This suggests confidential data on mobile devices are often left susceptible to cyber-attacks. What’s more, personal devices aren’t directly supervised by IT staff and aren’t always capable of handling the high-quality antivirus solutions that small businesses need.

When employees hook up their devices to the company’s network, they are leaving a trail for privacy, connectivity, and security issues. This can be hazardous for the company’s data security unless it is managed properly. Do employees work with their tools? Mobile device management platforms are effective for MSPs to keep the devices on track even within a client’s environment. What is mobile device management used for?

Mobile device management is an IT department software solution that permits employees to access their corporate network and data from their devices, no matter their location. In short, it’s bound to oversee, regulate, and secure employees’ portable devices. MDM is usually used as an umbrella term that encompasses mobile application management, mobile content management, and conditional exchange access.

The goal of mobile device management is to form mobile devices as secure and functional as possible while simultaneously protecting the encompassing network. It also serves to answer the large “what if” questions. If an employee is fired, what happens to the sensitive data that’s on their device or devices? What if a tool is lost or stolen? Will save data still exist on their smartphone or will it get wiped out?

MDM is comprised of two parts:

• Endpoint software called an MDM agent
• A separate MDM server that resides in a data center either on-premises or within thecloud

The MDM server is used by MSPs in configuring policies. The server will move the policies through the MDM agent towards the device. The agent executes the policies by communicating with APIs on the device’s OS. MSPs also can use the MDM server to put in applications on all managed devices directly.

Why is mobile device management important?

Mobile device management is vital because it’s the sole surefire way for MSPs to watch and manage their clients’ portable devices on their own without incurring the value of outside experts.

The numbers don’t lie; SMBs are increasingly adopting more mobile solutions to stay up with the zeitgeist and adapt to how their employees want to operate on a day-to-day basis. According to the research from the SMB Group, up to 68 percent of small to medium businesses see mobile solutions as vital for the operational efficiency of their businesses. 57 percent make use of mobile solutions for business purposes.

Without the advantages presented by mobile device management platforms, there is a high risk of sensitive information being susceptible to theft and exposing devices to malware. If a corporation falls into a data breach due to mismanaging mobile devices, the IT costs will increase and can even have troubles with the law. Having sensitive information exposed can lead to some lawsuits.

MSPs must provide MDM services not only to stay on pace with how their clients use mobile devices today but also to stick to the newest cyber security standards. The remote workforce and the gig economy grow and as we become more reliant on mobile communications, this vector becomes a more valuable target for hackers. As a result, more investment is important to manage the associated cyber security risks. To assist the management and implementation, a number of these security practices, many SMBs and MSPs are turning to mobile device management.

What does mobile device management help with?

MDM programs help with finding a scalable solution to manage portable devices. mobile device management tools must be ready to execute effective solutions across multiple mobile service providers and operating systems. A centralized platform is particularly helpful for MSPs who spend their time securing phones and tablets for their customers, or MSPs that have too many devices to handle manually.

With MDM, MSPs can partition personal user information far away from the corporate side, and encrypt certain information will prevent a hacker from getting through the partition. If someone’s device is stolen or they leave the corporate, MSPs can remotely remove corporate data from their system without affecting any of the private data surrounding it.