Sydney, 18 July 2013 – A new survey from Acronis® and the Ponemon Institute reveals that a majority of Australian companies are putting critical data at risk by not having secure bring-your-own-device (BYOD) policies in place. By ignoring simple security steps and employee BYOD education, companies are jeopardising their confidential data, exposing it to theft, corruption, hackers, malware and more.
Acronis’ 2013 Data Protection Trends Research, which evaluated responses from more than 4,300 IT professionals in eight countries, including 390 in Australia, discovered that:
1. There are Big Gaps in BYOD Policy
· Almost 60 percent (57 percent in Australia) have no personal device policy in place, and, among those with policies, 24 percent (27 percent in Australia) make exceptions for executives, who may handle even more sensitive data. As a result, these organisations are more vulnerable to data loss and serious compliance issues.
· More than 30 percent (33 percent in Australia) of organisations surveyed forbid personal devices from accessing the network.
· Nearly 80 percent (79 percent in Australia) of organisations haven’t educated employees on BYOD privacy risks.
2. Simple Security Precautions are Falling by the Wayside
· Just 31 percent (32 percent in Australia) of companies mandate a device password or key lock on personal devices, and only 21 percent (15 percent in Australia) perform remote device wipes when employees leave the company. Failing to apply security measures drastically increases the risk of data leakage.
3. Businesses Underestimate the Dangers of File Sharing through Public Clouds
· Corporate files are commonly shared through third-party cloud storage solutions such as DropBox, but 67 percent (74 percent in Australia) of the organisations don’t have a policy in place around public clouds and 80 percent (78 percent in Australia) haven’t trained employees in the proper use of these platforms.
4. Businesses Fear Apple® Devices are Complicating BYOD Security
· While 65 percent (72 percent in Australia) of the organisations already do or will support Macs® in the next year, more than half (57 percent, 58 percent in Australia) say compatibility and interoperability are still big obstacles to getting Macs compliant with IT, which puts data stored and shared across the corporate network and on Apple devices at risk.
“Personal devices have permanently and positively changed the workplace, particularly in the ways employees collaborate, work remotely and interact with company data,” said Simon Howe, sales director, Mobility Solutions APAC for Acronis. “BYOD is a huge opportunity for companies, but it also brings security challenges. Our research shows troubling signs of negligence in the face of these dangers by many organisations. However, with policies and solutions that manage the flow of data between multiple devices and environments, companies can practice safe BYOD with confidence.”
Matching BYOD Productivity with Policy
To optimise BYOD, protect the bottom line, and avoid data loss and serious compliance issues, organisations should take immediate steps to ensure employees are trained in safe BYOD practices, that personal device and public cloud use are monitored and managed, and that effective data protection solutions are in place to prevent data loss. These are the critical steps to achieving safe BYOD.
Resources:
Download the BYOD Survival Guide eBook here:
http://promo.acronis.com/ANZ-EN-DRI_BYOD_Guide.html
Find the Acronis BYOD Safety infographic here:
http://www.acronis.com.au/promo/byod-infographics
For more information on Acronis mobility solutions, click here:
http://www.acronis.com.au/products/tryorbuy.html#secure-data-access