Bring your own device (BYOD) is a reality for businesses. It has many advantages, such as cost savings, but also challenges – most essentially, security. The mistake some businesses make, says Vodacom’s Anthon Muller, is to over-manage devices to the detriment of productivity. 

‘There is a fine line to walk when trying to be both secure and productive, and of course the more mobile devices an organisation has, the higher the security risk. So what is really needed is the right tools to securely enable the flexibility required by the organisation,’ says Muller.

A Ready business is proactive

The right tools are, of course, essential to enable secure flexibility. But perhaps even more important is user education. ‘You can deploy the most sophisticated security in the world, but if your user is not properly educated on the subject, it is still likely to fail,’ he says.

The key is to have a comprehensive Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM) Strategy and clear policies that let employees know the dos and don’ts of using personal devices for work. Many organisations are reactive but a savvy business proactively chooses the best solutions, built into the fabric of the organisation.

CIOs and business owners will shudder to hear that many employees don’t even secure their devices with a PIN or password – multi-factor authentication is desirable, and should be mandated in the EMM.

Another key tool is ‘containerisation’. This allows business information, from emails to key documents, to be stored within a specific ‘container’ on the device, which can then be deleted remotely if it's lost or stolen.

The right security partner

‘Vodacom Business is able to assist enterprises with all of the above, thanks to our consulting, advisory and professional services. We can not only deploy the right tools to enable a full stack of EMM services, but also provide assistance with user education thereof. Moreover, we can do this across a range of vertical markets, according to each industry’s specific security needs,’ says Muller.

‘Most importantly, Vodacom has the infrastructure, the tools and the partners to provide enterprises with a genuine end-to-end service around EMM. You could say that we not only provide a BYOD offering, but one that is "bring your own network" as well, and regardless of the service providers being used, we will still be able to offer an effective EMM solution to cover it.’