Mobility can be challenging if it is not managed correctly. Incorporating mobility into the business strategy can effectively extend and establish the organisations potential as well as employee productivity. However, this can place excessive demands and pressure on the IT administrators, management and security team. The reason for the increased burden and pressure on the IT department is because so much of the flexibility offered by the new infrastructure is placed in the hands of the end-users.
Ironically, the helpdesk and IT department, as much as many would like to avoid it, are crucial when it comes to mobility management or when new technological strategies are being incorporated within the business such as Bring Your Own Device, abbreviated as BYOD. This is because although the majority of the mobility infrastructure is flexible and controlled by the end-users, they still remain compliant with security requirements without the technical assistance.
Adding additional layers of security
Additional security has to be intertwined within the security infrastructure as users are external to the enterprise perimeter and thus access control and identity management becomes a lot more complex and has to be robust. Multi-factor authentication, including tools such as biometrics, challenges, and out-of-band confirmations, might be required.
It is also essential for end-users to be connected with their device; the location, as well as the nature of the network, will also allow a better measurement of the level of success of security and robust authentication. Furthermore, trust also plays a significant role here, as the user who may connect via the corporate security network and passes through the security protocols will have a higher degree of trust as opposed to a user trying to connect through a coffee shop or an external place which does not have a secure Wi-Fi connection, and thus access privileges are restricted accordingly. Additional factors of authentication might also be required from users on an untrusted network.
Devices should be monitored or checked periodically for compliance with security requirements. For privately-owned devices, this might involve checking and updating only those that are assigned specifically for business use. For devices issued by the organization, the entire device will be evaluated and updated as needed, including all applications running on it. Restriction of access will be needed for out-of-compliance devices that have not been brought up to the standards.
Simple but secure authentication management
It is not always easy to determine external security and therefore, LogonBox offers authentication modules which means robust multiple steps can be configured providing the extra security and support for every user. There are a total of 9 modules which include reset questions, PIN, passphrases and reCAPTCHA. The procedure is also very simple: choose, drag and drop the desired authentication flow that best fits the organisation’s security needs.
Bringing it all together
Businesses have started to offer their employees varied choices of employment, these include options such as Bring Your Own Devices or the privilege of working remotely. Such mobility options can be difficult to incorporate due to security and privacy being compromised. However, all businesses can easily overcome the challenges with a few robust security measures such as multi-factor authentication and least-privilege access control offered by LogonBox which ensures the organisation is protected and the authenticated employee has access to all the required resources.
