For many professionals, visions of kicking back and working from the beach with a pia colada in one hand and an iPad in the other are no longer fantasies. Businesses are discovering that allowing employees to work remotely on their own devices without sacrificing productivity is possible.
As a result, many businesses weigh the advantages of having staff work remotely against the logistical challenges of implementing a mobile device management strategy.

BYOD (Bring Your Own Device) has numerous tangible advantages, including:

• Savings on equipment

• Improved staff satisfaction and productivity

• Lessened workload for IT personnel (since employees maintain their equipment)

• Office space has been reduced in size (as workers are mostly off-site)

BYOD risks exposing security vulnerabilities that are not immediately controlled by IT professionals or addressed by corporate antivirus solutions. This is where mobile device management becomes necessary.

A new threat scenario has emerged.

Because they lack pre-installed malware protection, tablets and smartphones are considered less safe than desktop PCs and laptops. Individual users and IT administrators must seek for and install mobile endpoint security management on their own for the newest mobile gadgets, as most laptops come with at least a trial version of an antivirus package.

This flaw has not gone unnoticed by hackers, who release new threats daily, such as SMS text message-based attacks. While the old virus is certainly bothersome, it pales in comparison to the harm caused by these new cybercrime tactics, including more sophisticated Trojans, keyloggers, phishing attempts, and malicious apps than ever before.

Maintaining security without going bankrupt.

Although enforcing a prohibition on these gadgets is nearly impossible, there are alternatives for businesses on a limited budget:

1. The first and most cost-effective approach is to set rules for these devices in the workplace, including acceptable use standards, prohibited programs, and how to avoid potentially risky behavior like accessing some problematic websites while connected to the company's Wi-Fi.

2. Next, assess your existing solutions to see if they can be tweaked to protect BYOD devices via password enforcement, remote wiping, or other safeguards.

3. If the number of devices or the sensitivity of the data necessitates a more robust solution, consider using Mobile Device Management (MDM) software. MDM is advised if IT personnel are spending an undue amount of time safeguarding tablets and smartphones – or if the sheer diversity of devices and emerging threats puts their expertise to the test.

The essential elements of a Fully Managed MDM program

How do you choose an MDM service once you've determined that it's necessary? To cover the major recommended features, use the following as a mini-checklist:

• Because it's cloud-based, upgrades are simple and painless.

• Configuration and monitoring through the internet

• Enforce passwords, blacklists, and other security policies

• Corporate data backup and restore functionality

• For compliance considerations, logging/reporting, is required.

• Unauthorized devices and programs can be disconnected or disabled remotely.

Many companies are becoming aware of the growing BYOD trend and the importance of mobile device security. Small and medium-sized enterprises with limited IT resources and budgets want a solution that protects them and larger corporations. Fortunately, the managed service provider is moving in the direction of more economical and easier-to-manage systems, which is wonderful news for businesses of all sizes.