BYOD security risks not a concern for consumers

BYOD Security Risks not a Concern for Consumers
by Nathan Eddy 
 
The Gartner survey also revealed 20 percent of respondents access data behind the workplace firewall using private devices.
Despite the rise in the use of personal devices for business use, U.S. consumers are showing scant concern for security when it comes to bring your own device (BYOD) programs, according to a survey by IT research firm Gartner.
A quarter of business users admitted to having had a security issue with their private device in 2013, but only 27 percent of those respondents felt obliged to report this to their employer, the survey found. In addition, 26 percent of respondents said their employer required use of BYOD devices and 15 percent had signed a BYOD agreement. A third of respondents have employers who are aware but don’t have a policy in place, and the rest said their employer was either not aware or they didn't know.
This suggests 59 percent of survey respondents who regularly use their private devices for work have not yet signed a formal agreement with their employer.
"Whatever the activity and the duration, any work activity on a private device inherently carries the threat of a security breach. That leaves IT organizations scrambling to come up with the right mix of mobile security defenses to balance protection, governance and user flexibility", Meike Escherich, principal research analyst at Gartner, said in a statement. "Businesses will need help from telecoms service providers (TSPs) to evaluate and implement policies and procedures, ongoing user education, and sourcing and deploying mobile security, encryption and mobile device management (MDM) solutions". The report noted one of the biggest challenges for IT leaders is making sure that their users fully understand the implications of faulty mobile security practices and to get users and management to adhere to essential steps which secure their mobile devices.
 
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