Tech Tip - June 25, 2013 Print
Tuesday, 25 June 2013 09:56

The Smarter Approach to Bring Your Own Device (BYOD)  

This month we have considered the impact of the BYOD on your network’s health. Hopefully, you are more aware of the serious implications these stray devices have on your overall system. Locking down access to one or two folders can seemingly solve your security issues, but what happens to data after the employee leaves? What protection against viruses does the device have, and how do you make sure those viruses don’t hop onto the network?

Consider the COPE method, Corporate Owned, Personally Enabled. This method means the company owns the device and therefore can set policies and procedures at a more advanced level. When an employee leaves the company, the device stays and so does its information. The device must adhere to standards set forth by the corporate policies at all times and therefore increases the safety of the network.

No matter whether you are using BYOD or COPE, there are some additional considerations you can immediately begin discussing in your organization.

  1. Pass a policy: no one can connect without written consent from corporate and proper onboarding of the device.
  2. Onboard the device using invitations to the network and enforcement of policies and passwords.
  3. Decide what should be monitored or managed on the device, for example: monitoring the current status of the anti-virus to protect your user and your network.
  4. Consider what you have the right to report on, for example: phone calls during working hours or data usage?
  5. The most important consideration: OFFBOARDING. The idea is to proactively identify the information that should be removed from the device along with any rights or privileges. This should be an expected process when an employee disembarks from your company.

Because of the overlap of personal rights and corporate rights, you should know the threats which exist in fairly innocuous packages like itunes and youtube. Talk to employees and discover what they feel comfortable agreeing to sacrifice or practice. Consult with Pronets for expertise and ask about the possible threats and exposures these devices cause to your company’s network.