Beyond the nightmares of delivering the bandwidth needed to accommodate every device, BYOD programs bring with them the ever-looming threat of potentially massive data breaches and ransomware attacks.
The city of Baltimore experienced the damage of malware first hand when cybercriminals held some of the city’s crucial operations ransom for $76,000 in bitcoin. When the mayor refused to pay, the cybercriminals maintained control, and “the attack ultimately cost the city an estimated $18.2 million.”
These security risks and the amount of time it takes to implement a program are just a part of the reason why many companies don’t already have a BYOD program in place. But with the proliferation of smart devices in the workplace, having one might help your employees be more productive.
Before you start down the road of figuring how to implement one, you should first figure out if it makes sense to implement one in the first place.
Here are the things you should consider first.
- Can Your IT Team Manage It?
- How Will Employees Use Their Devices?
- Will Employees Need To Upgrade Their Devices?
- Are You Prepared For Budget Changes?
- How Will You Mitigate Data Loss?
- How Will You Manage Licensing and Potential Legal Issues?
- What If No One’s Ready For It?
DOWNLOAD: The (Surprisingly Painless) Guide to BYOD [Ebook]
Can Your IT Team Manage It?
Giving your employees the ability to bring in their own devices increases the amount of risk your network will face. It will become vital that you keep security measures and policies in check.
That includes updates, patches, and more for all of the operating systems, applications, servers, and people on your network. All of which means more work for your IT team.
If your team can handle this, or if you can offload some of this onto a managed service provider or through your organization’s cloud-managed network, you might be able to implement a BYOD program. If not, you might want to pass on it until you have a better plan.
How Will Employees Use Their Devices?
When people are using a company device, most will take a second to consider what it is they’re downloading or installing. That’s not always the case with personal devices.
People are using their phones more and more to access the internet. And, because of that, hackers are attacking phones more than any other device, meaning a BYOD program could open your network to more phishing, malware, and data leaks.
What’s more, employees might not even have to click the email. Hackers can now simulate ghost taps on your phone and execute actions without your knowledge, making security essential and critical.
The good news, though, is that allowing employees to use their phones might help them be more productive. Sometimes, employee devices are more up-to-date than company devices, potentially making them faster and more secure. It also means employees might be more familiar with them or using them for work even when they’re not at the office.
Will Employees Need To Upgrade Their Devices?
As we mentioned before, you’ll need to maintain security and compliance when you implement a BYOD program. Because of that, employees with older devices might be at a disadvantage for two reasons.
The first is that older devices, such as phones and tablets, might not perform as well on the network, thus possibly making them less productive.
The second is that older devices are less secure, either because they’re no longer receiving updates or because they use technology and software that’s more susceptible to hacking.
Requiring your employees to use devices manufactured within the last few years would force them to spend more of their money to perform their responsibilities.
Are You Prepared For Budget Changes?
Your network needs can change for many reasons, including company expansion and growth or slow periods and declining growth.
If you implement a BYOD program, you’ll need to know that you can respond to shifts in bandwidth needs and new initiatives—even if they aren’t a part of the BYOD program—such as adding a new computer lab or new video-conferencing center.
If you’re using managed services, you’ll need to know whether or not you can add more bandwidth as needed and whether or not you can adjust to potential cost increases by your managed service provider.
While it might be a tedious and challenging process to set up a BYOD program, it could become an organizational nightmare to take it down.
How Will You Mitigate Data Loss?
Employees who use their devices to work will end up storing company files on them, too. A shortlist of this includes emails, presentations, financial records, and documents. They’ll probably even create them, too.
Before you give employees the option to use their devices to conduct work and store company files, you need to consider all of the risks to your data and theirs.
Beyond security leaks, hacked databases, malware, phishing, and more, how will you navigate collecting all of that data when an employee leaves or their device is damaged or lost?
You can mitigate some of this through Enterprise Mobile Management (EMM) or Mobile Device Management (MDM) software. However, this software adds to the total cost and complexity of your network.
They store information in containers that help separate company data from personal data, such as pictures and contacts. And you can use them to remotely back up and delete company information from their phone when they leave while leaving their personal information intact.
Either way, before you start down the BYOD road, you’ll need to figure out the best way to wipe company data from personal devices without capturing or deleting their data.
How Will You Manage Licensing and Potential Legal Issues?
Many companies license software, hardware, and more to help their employees perform their jobs. But what happens if someone uses those services for personal projects and those projects violate the terms and conditions of the license or directly compete with your business?
If someone downloads, streams, or shares trademarked, copyrighted, or illegal content using their mobile device, but through software or a service that your company licenses, who’s ultimately responsible for any potential legal ramifications?
These are serious issues that need to be addressed before you start. It might even be an issue you need to or have already discussed for company-owned devices.
However, if it’s a road you and your staff would rather not travel down, then it’s best not to get involved in a BYOD program at all.
What If No One’s Ready For It?
With all of this said, there’s still the possibility that employees don’t want a BYOD program. But maybe they still want to use the Wi-Fi at work to connect their devices?
There are ways to solve this, including setting up a separate network that allows for connecting personal devices but doesn’t provide access to company assets or material. Or maybe you set up a BYOD program that only allows access to specific apps and services.
Some employees might choose privacy over the benefits of using their devices. Others might see a BYOD program as a must-have.
Whichever route you take, make sure you’re confident with your decision. And, if you are ready to take the next step, we have a guide that can help you plan and prepare for it.
