BYOD High on Priority List for Most Businesses in 2015

In the last couple of years, BOYD has been rapidly adopted by companies seeking to increase the flexibility of their employees. What must not be forgotten, however, is that everything carries its price, and BYOD is no exception. Unprotected devices can pose some very serious security risks and can serve as an entry point for hackers seeking access to otherwise secure networks.

According to a recent IT Risk Report, companies are indeed recognizing the increased threat presented by the use of various unsecured devices on their networks. In fact, 35% of respondent businesses recognized it as one of the top concerns for the upcoming year. “We all know that businesses are more mobile, but the usage profile is changing – you now see most businesses using mobile devices to share sensitive information and even conduct financial transactions,” says David Emm of Kaspersky Global Research & Analysis Team.

What’s interesting, however, is that almost 49% of companies believe that mobile devices are less secure than laptops or desktops. 41% think they are just as secure, while 5% believe they are more secure than their less mobile counterparts. Although there are many points on which various businesses have differing opinions, all agree on one point: BYOD is a threat to their security. Curiously, the level of concern increases with company size. 28% of very small businesses see it as a threat, while 47% of medium and 49% of large enterprises believe it presents an increased threat.

The concern is surely in place, too. 30% of companies have experienced a loss or theft of a mobile device over the last four years, even though the data loss as a result of this has fallen from 26% in 2012 to 21% in 2014. Even with the drop of data loss, it’s still the second highest way for companies to lose their data, only surpassed by accidental sharing of data by employees.