In a very short space of time mobile has evolved from being another device for IT to support, to a new way of doing business. One that allows employees to do the same work they can do at their desk, from any location at any time. In the age of flexibility, employees are no longer shackled to their desks, but tethered to their mobile devices.

Australian businesses need to do more to stem data breaches

Overseas, the cost of the data breach at credit-reference agency Equifax is still rising, having already surpassed $439 million. With more costs to come, it’s highly likely this data breach will go down as the biggest in corporate history.

In many organisations, the IT department is tasked with enterprise mobility management even though IT skills are not specifically required to manage a great many mobility tasks. Everything from creating a BYOD policy, to ordering and provisioning devices, to configuring smartphones, replacing lost or stolen devices, and managing data expenses is hardly the remit of computer science professionals.

Despite the significant advantages of enterprise mobility, for IT and security professionals, mobility creates ongoing challenges. Chief among them is finding the right balance between allowing staff to work wherever and whenever they need to, on their preferred device, and having internal controls in place to ensure company data is safe and secure. 

Despite the tightening regulatory framework of General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in Europe and Notifiable Data Breach (NBD) legislation over here, gaping holes are prevalent in data protection and security management practices across the country. The latest quarterly mandatory data breach report by the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner (OAIC), suggests that mobile security practices still have some way to go before they are ingrained in the employee mindset.