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Apple Devices Creating Blind Spot for IT Security

Apple and IT security Apple Devices Creating Blind Spot for IT Security A recent study finds that most Apple devices used at work have little or no supervision from IT. A surprising percentage of these devices are employee-owned. Prevalence of Apple Devices in the Workplace 45% of workers surveyed use at least one Apple device […]

Written By

Michael Vizard

Sep 2, 2015

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Apple and IT security

Apple Devices Creating Blind Spot for IT Security

A recent study finds that most Apple devices used at work have little or no supervision from IT. A surprising percentage of these devices are employee-owned.

Prevalence of Apple Devices in the Workplace

45% of workers surveyed use at least one Apple device for work. Nearly two-thirds (63%) of those devices are user-owned and are employed to access work email, corporate documents and business apps.

Use of Macintoshes Inside the Enterprise

More than half (59%) of Macs are used to access confidential company information, with 65% of Macs being used to access sensitive or regulated customer information.

iPhone and iPad Use

Just over half (51%) of iPhones in the workplace are used to gain access to business apps; 58% of iPads in the workplace are used to gain access to business apps.

Level of Security Applied to Apple Devices

A little more than half (51%) of all devices are secured by a password that is merely a single word or a series of numbers. What’s more, 58% of devices also do not have software installed to enforce strong passwords.

Password Sharing Among Apple Users

More than half (56%) of users report sharing their passwords with others. People are especially prone to sharing tablet devices with friends and family.

Use of Password Managers

Only 17% of Apple devices have a company-supplied password manager. Without a password manager, employees default to keeping passwords relatively simple to remember and, of course, guess.

Use of Device Management Software

Only 28% of Apple devices have company-provided device-management solutions installed. Without it, end users can pretty much install any app they want without taking IT security into account.

Encryption on Apple Devices

As in most IT environments, there is not much use of encryption to secure data. Only 35% of Apple devices have encryption of stored data enforced by their companies.

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.

Apple Devices Creating Blind Spot for IT Security

Michael Vizard

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