Is Your Mobile App Data Safe?

Today, mobile applications can be found in any industry. People value them for multiple benefits, for example functionality, flexibility, and increased productivity. For many companies, mobile business applications have even changed the way of doing business.

However, companies using mobile business applications should be aware of the possible risks, and try to prevent them. According to the most recent report from Lookout, the malware encounter rate in the US is at 7%. Often, companies start seeking the causes of data breach too late even though these breaches can be avoided.

Nowadays many companies follow BYOD trends. Nevertheless, one should always remember some critical security concerns which a commitment to BYOD entails. According to the Ponemon Institute’s Cost of Data Breach Study: Global Analysis, the average cost resulting from a breach increased by 15% in 2014, reaching $3.5 million.  This way, rigorous checks on mobile security must be implemented. Not surprisingly, a solid Mobile Device Management (MDM) policy is becoming essential for every company.

Data leakage is a fairly common problem. Your confidential information may be in the ruthless competitors’ or cheaters’ hands. Thus, you should strictly control the amount of data used by each application. If you establish an audit trail, you will have a clear picture of data usage.

Some employees believe that adherence to MDM policy does not prevent them from installing business applications on their personal devices. But by making sure that all your corporate data is encrypted and remains inside a security container, you can avoid data leakage and its damage.

Cloud-based services are very convenient but carry a certain risk for your data. According to a new report by Netskope, 88% of cloud apps used as a result of the BYOD trend are unsafe. This report also states that 15% of employees’ credentials have already been compromised. A good option to prevent problems with data is a system that secures the transmission and employs the encryption of your files.

Another obvious risk for your data is unauthorized users. If you decided to allow mobile users to access your network remotely, then you need to take the appropriate steps to authenticate them.

You can also consider professional penetration testing as a way to reveal vulnerabilities and weaknesses that you may have overlooked. In fact, it is much easier and cheaper to create effective data security in the process of application development.