Study: CIOs Prioritizing Personal Mobile Device Management and Security

Independent Study Finds Majority of Enterprises Supporting Personally-Owned Mobile Devices and More than a Third Supporting Multiple Mobile OSs. Cloud-hosted Tools the Preferred Solution for IT Device Management.

Blue Bell, Pa.—August 3, 2010—“Managing and Securing Corporate and Personal Mobile Devices in Financial Services,” a commissioned technology adoption profile conducted by Forrester Consulting on behalf of Fiberlink Communications Corporation was released today with findings from financial services IT leaders on the top security priorities for personal mobile devices. With more than half of financial services enterprises already supporting personally-owned mobile devices, a significant challenge has been introduced to most firms’ existing mobile policies and IT operations.

Leveraging its Forrsights for Business Technology network of IT decision-makers at large enterprises in the financial services and insurance industry, Forrester found that personally-owned devices are growing in the enterprise and CIOs are making management and security more of a priority than ever before. For 49 percent of the respondents, ensuring regulatory compliance is the top IT security priority. IT professionals within firms governed by the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) must ensure that smartphones are in compliance with their firm’s broader privileged information requirements. When asked which industry regulations are driving concerns regarding mobile devices, 41 percent indicated FINRA compliance and, the same percentage reported that Sarbanes–Oxley compliance is a concern.

More than a third of the IT professionals indicated that their enterprise supports multiple mobile operating systems (OSs), with ten percent supporting four or more. In an effort to avoid getting spread too thin, IT often provides minimal support for these OSs, introducing vulnerabilities and threats. Forrester notes, “The key is to make management and security the foundation of your business's next-generation mobile strategy. As mobile operations increasingly converge, IT and telecom managers are realizing that they need to treat mobile devices the same as PCs.”

“Based on this commissioned study from Forrester, it’s clear to see that mobile device management and PC management are converging,” said Jim Szafranski, senior vice president, customer platform services of Fiberlink. “Over 80% of firms are concerned about malware, hackers and identity theft – all issues previously associated with computers, not mobile devices. The research shows is that IT is now wisely beginning to manage smartphones in the same manner as PCs.”

The study indicates that tackling these challenges requires that IT and telecom managers invest in a mobility service that delivers on key functionality. Eighty-six percent of respondents have already deployed a strong password policy. Other popularly-deployed strategies include: full disk encryption (71 percent), remote lock/wipe (64 percent) and asset and activity visibility and management (66 percent) across all types of mobile devices. Over the next two years, 43 percent of enterprises surveyed plan to deploy Over-the-air (OTA) configuration management. The study notes that “Cloud-hosted offerings that can deliver a single tool without the additional costs and infrastructure complexities associated with behind-the-firewall solutions are quickly becoming the preferred solutions architecture for IT professionals worldwide.”

The study “Managing and Securing Corporate and Personal Mobile Devices in Financial Services” can be downloaded here http://www.maas360.com/fiberlink/en-US/knowledge/whitepapers/ForresterFinancial.html. Fiberlink offers a cloud-hosted mobile IT compliance service, which addresses many of the needs of stated in the Forrester technology adoption profile. The company offers a free 30-day trial of the service, available at http://www2.maas360.com/services/downloads.php.

About Fiberlink
Fiberlink is the creator and developer of cloud-based Mobility-as-a Service (MaaS) solutions. The company's MaaS360® mobility infrastructure and subscription services have revolutionized how business users share and secure information over the Internet. Fiberlink's MaaS360 platform ensures reliable, secure and compliant mobile working for employees, while delivering unprecedented Mobility Intelligence™ to senior management and IT operations. The company is a recognized leader in helping both Global 2000 companies and smaller businesses cost-effectively support expanding mobile workforces and use mobile devices to remain competitive in today's economy. Additional information about Fiberlink is available at www.fiberlink.com.

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