Feature-rich handhelds create new challenges for IT departments.
With the ability to handle all aspects of a user’s handheld
computing and communication needs in a single, small package, full-featured
mobile phones with PC-like functionality have become indispensable
tools in organizations across a broad range of industry segments.
As devices become even thinner and smaller with expanding feature
sets, their popularity continues to skyrocket. According to high-tech
analyst firm IDC, 878 million workers will be accessing corporate
networks via an array of mobile devices by 2009.
Anytime, anywhere access to corporate data and e-mail are among
the principal draws. Those features also mean that mobile devices
increasingly contain some of the most valuable and confidential
data found in any organization. That’s why keeping tabs on
them, their software and their data has become a top priority for
IT departments.
Gaining Control
More and more organizations are turning to mobile device management
(MDM) and mobile security applications in an effort to maintain
security, control support costs and ensure the devices fit into
existing management systems and frameworks. MDM solutions not only
provide centralized management of mobile devices, they can be used
to remotely resolve software issues, implement application recovery
for corrupted configurations, deliver application and patch updates,
remotely enforce data encryption synchronization, and perform device
lock-down or data destruction for lost and misplaced devices.
Such control is imperative, considering how few mobile devices
are actually owned and distributed by the organization.
“Just a couple years ago, most Blackberries, Treos and Palms
were issued by companies and supported by corporate IT departments,
but the trend is going at light speed in the other direction,” said
Richard Hanna, COO of MDM software provider Motive. “Today’s
users are soccer moms, NASCAR dads and teens, who demand easier
access through a single, unified service platform.”
Among the leaders in the MDM space are Avocent LANDesk, Nokia
Intellisync, Novell, Sybase iAnywhere, Mobilethink, Capricode,
SmartTrust, Innopath and mFormation. In addition, heavyweights
such as IBM and HP are also involved in deploying such solutions.
The Open Mobile Alliance (OMA) has a device management workgroup
called OMA-DM, which is working to create standards for device
management.
In general, MDM products require client software on each handheld.
To simplify deployment, administrators can send a Web link to the
installation software over SMS (Short Message Service) or e-mail.
A client establishes a connection to an enterprise server at a
specified polling interval to determine if there are any updates
or new software to install. In addition, other products such as
mobile VPN, virus protection, firewall and encryption products
can be layered on top of the MDM software.
“For most enterprises today, device-based security such
as device wipe/lock and encryption of the data on the device are
the most important features that a mobile security solution must
contain,” said Stacy Sudan, research analyst for IDC's Mobile
Enterprise Software. “But in the future, secure content and
threat management features like mobile firewall, mobile VPN, and
mobile antivirus will begin to gain increased importance for companies
seeking to secure further aspects of enterprise mobility.”
Mobile Servers
In conjunction with MDM applications, a good way to control mobile
devices is by centralizing communications through a mobile server.
These mobile servers act as proxy servers for cellular-connected
mobile devices, routing approved connections to corporate servers
as appropriate. Administrators create policies to ensure that only
authorized devices can access company data, e-mail and applications.
Mobile servers also can tie into identity servers, such as Microsoft
Active Directory, to share one set of network permissions between
the corporate network and the connected devices.
IT departments face new challenges with the proliferation of mobile
devices within the enterprise. While the main security concern
a few years ago was protecting corporate desktops from hackers
and preventing malicious code from entering the LAN or WAN via
wired connections to the Internet, the popularity of mobile devices
and ubiquitous access to wireless networks require new management
measures. Mobile devices represent yet another endpoint that IT
must secure due to the varying methods by which they are procured,
the different operating systems they run on, and the unique ways
in which they are used.
“Mobile device management and mobile security is now a critical
component to any enterprise deploying a mobility solution,” said
Samir Sakpal, a Frost & Sullivan analyst. “These solutions
enable businesses to cope with rising costs, security concerns
and management issues in the fast-paced mobile device market.”
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