‘Shadow BYOD’ Practices Put Gov’t Data at Risk

Mobile device security

‘Shadow BYOD’ Practices Put Gov’t Data at Risk

Federal agencies should implement mobile-device management and other security measures to protect their data while letting employees use their mobile devices.

High BYOD Use

50% of federal employees use their personal devices for work email, and 49% use their personal devices to download work files.

Using Personal Email

24% of federal employees send work documents to their personal email accounts, and 17% store work-related documents on file-sharing apps.

Security Risks

While only 7% of federal employees have jailbroken or rooted the devices they bring to or use at work, 57% of employees who have done so have access to work documents on that device and 65% have access to work email.

App Buying

24% of federal employees are downloading apps to their mobile devices outside official app stores.

Malicious Software

18% of federal employees with personal or government-issued smartphones have encountered malicious software; 19% were Android users and 14% iPhone users.

Ignoring Mobile Policies

40% of agency employees ignore rules prohibiting personal smartphone use at work, saying the rules have little to no effect on their decisions.

Bad Behavior

37% of employees are willing to sacrifice government security to use a personal mobile device at work although they are aware of security concerns.

Lack of Security

49% of federal employees do not use a security app or solution installed on the mobile devices they bring to or use at work; 13% use unsecured devices for reading or downloading work-related documents.

More Safeguards Needed

Although 58% of employees are aware of the security concerns with their personal mobile phones at work, 85% continue to use their personal devices for potentially risky activities.

Compromising Data

48% of employees said they aren’t permitted to store work-related files or info on their personal devices, yet nearly 30% said they do.