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As MDM Gains Ground, Security Remains Paramount

As MDM Gains Ground, Security Remains Paramount Number of Mobile Apps Being Managed End users often have access to more apps on their mobile devices than on their desktops; 65% of the users have more than 25 mobile apps being managed on their devices. Source of Mobile Apps Public (commercially available and open source) apps […]

Written By: Michael Vizard

Jun 18, 2014

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Number of Mobile Apps Being Managed

End users often have access to more apps on their mobile devices than on their desktops; 65% of the users have more than 25 mobile apps being managed on their devices.

Source of Mobile Apps

Public (commercially available and open source) apps make up 62% of the portfolio, compared with 38% for custom apps.

Mobile Deployment Platforms

Inside the enterprise, Apple is still the mobile king. Apple iOS dominates, with 77% of the applications, followed by Google Android, with 22%, and Windows, with 1%.

Custom App Deployment

Apple also rules when it comes to custom app development. Of the custom apps being deployed, 69% wound up on Apple iOS devices.

Most Popular Public Apps Distributed to Employees

The presence of Cisco AnyConnect suggests a lot of reliance on traditional VPNs. Other popular public apps include Adobe Reader, Google Maps, iBooks and Dropbox.

Most Popular Browser

Google Chrome rises to the mobile challenge. Despite Apple dominance, the most widely used browser on mobile devices is Google Chrome.

Security for Public Apps

Some work still needs to be done here. “Organizations have been traditionally limited in their ability to place advanced security policies around publicly available apps. … Most of the options … are about removing the apps pushed to the device if and when the device is lost, stolen or the employee leaves the company.” Only 41% of apps are automatically removed if IT wipes the device.

Custom App Security

Options for providing custom application security include forcing the user to authenticate before granting access to the app, blocking the use of an app when the device is found to be out of compliance, enabling an in-app VPN, enforcing file protection and ensuring all files created by the app are encrypted.

Michael Vizard

Michael Vizard is a seasoned IT journalist, with nearly 30 years of experience writing and editing about enterprise IT issues. He is a writer for publications including Programmableweb, IT Business Edge, CIOinsight, Channel Insider and UBM Tech. He formerly was editorial director for Ziff-Davis Enterprise, where he launched the company’s custom content division, and has also served as editor in chief for CRN and InfoWorld. He also has held editorial positions at PC Week, Computerworld and Digital Review.

As MDM Gains Ground, Security Remains Paramount

Michael Vizard

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