Posts Tagged ‘mobile computing’

According to the 2009 Annual Study on Enterprise Encryption Trends, completed by Ponemon Institute and sponsored by PGP, indicates that while encryption strategies have become more consistent, data breaches continue to be an issue. In addition, the data indicates that mobile security is becoming more of an issue, with 51% of respondents indicating a complete lack of encryption on mobile devices (smartphones, PDAs).

This is the 4th annual study on enterprise encryption, basing the data this year on 997 IT and security practitioners in the US (a UK study is also available). The study looks at trends in encryption use, planning strategies, budgeting, and deployment methodologies in enterprise IT.

Highlights from the study:

• 78% of organizations have an encryption strategy in place (74% in 2008)
• 85% experienced at least one data breach in the last 12 months (84% in 2008)
• 22% experienced >5 data breaches in the last 12 months (13% in 2008)
• 58% say data protection is a very important part of overall risk management
• 59% say encryption of data on mobile devices is very important or important
• 26% indicate they encrypt their smartphone or PDA ‘most of the time’
• 51% have no encryption in place for the smartphone or PDA

I was surprised that the repeat data breach figures had gone up so dramatically, showing perhaps that data breaches are becoming chronic issues in some companies. This could indicate a lack of proactive security planning and risk assessment.

The study does indicate that companies are seeking out encryption solutions to preserve brand and reputation, in addition to mitigating breaches and meeting compliance regulations. This shows, perhaps, that companies are ready to take a more pro-active approach to security planning. Remember, too, that encryption is only a part of the solution to pro-active security planning. Absolute Software can help with other pieces of that puzzle, providing IT Asset Management & Theft Recovery for laptops and mobile devices.

Download the report, for the UK or the US, here.

Via SC Magazine

As we announced about a month ago here on the blog and on Absolute.com, Absolute Software has been running a closed beta of its existing Computrace Mobile for the BlackBerry platform!

John Halamka, CIO for Caregroup, is one of our beta testers and he recently shared his experiences with the product on his blog, saying:

“Although the Absolute products are primarily encryption, tracking, and data protection systems, they are also a very cool geotracking system for Blackberry owners (with their consent).”

In addition to recognized benefits of tracking his BlackBerry, and wiping the data if it does go missing, John realized he could share the login for the Computrace Customer Care center with his family, so they’d always know where he was.

I had a chance to correspond briefly with John by email about his experience with the new service. John says that he’s never had a mobile device lost or stolen before, although had a close call when he left a Palm with personal information on an airplane. His current BlackBerry has contact information, no insecure corporate data, but the new Massachusetts Data Protection regulations have prompted an evaluation of products to encrypt / protect corporate mobile devices.

John Halamka was not a previous customer of Absolute Software, so this is his first experience using Computrace. He describes the installation process of the tracking agents to his MacBook and BlackBerry as “seamless”. You can read his full experience here.

Computrace Mobile is expected to be generally available for the BlackBerry for corporate customers in 2009. If you’re a journalist interested in doing a review, contact Absolute for a private demo.

Computrace Mobile currently is supported on all Windows Mobile 5 and 6 handheld devices including the HP iPAQ, HTC Touch, MOTO Q, Samsung BlackJack and Treo 750.

Cornell University School of Hotel Administration has released the results of a study on “Hotel Network Security“. The study concluded that US hotels are “generally ill-prepared” to protect their guests from network security issues.”

The study was conducted by Josh Ogle, Erica L. Wagner Ph.D. and Mark P. Talbert of Cornell University’s Center for Hospitality Research. The study of 147 US hotels found that there was a mixed picture with regard to the security of guest connections to the hotel wired and wireless networks.

Many business travelers use their hotel to continue working on the road, an increasingly common practice with the mobile workforce of today. However, as we’ve talked about in many instances on the Absolute blog, this places sensitive corporate information at risk.

According to the study, some hotels still rely on basic hub technology for their networks, which broadcasts every packet from every user to other users (no security). Others may have upgraded to more secure switches or routers, or may have encryption for Wi-Fi connections. Even with all of these upgrades, malicious lurkers can still intercept guest transmissions.

Highlights from the study:

• 20% of hotel networks use hub topologies
• 90% of hotels offered wireless access
• Out of the 39 hotels that had supplemental site visits, only 6 had wireless encryption
• 21% of hotels reported that malicious activity had taken place on their networks

The report outlines an example of best practice, with the case of the W Dallas Hotel – Victory. They have set up virtual local area networks (VLANs) for all hotel guests, inhibiting attackers from using the most common means of data intercept. The study goes so far as to lay fault on hotels that are not using available technology to protect hotel guests.

A number of recommendations were also made for hotel guests, including having an updated firewall, using the secure socket layer (SSL) protocol for transactions, and using virtual private network (VPN) or SSL-based email.

Download link: Hotel Network Security: A Study of Computer Networks in U.S. Hotels [PDF] Author note: at the time of publishing, the PDF link was not working well.

Via GCN ; Image: Microsoft Clipart