* The growth of mobility will create a variety of data security problems
My recent newsletter on mobility (the ability to access messaging and other corporate resources from any browser-based platform) as a key trend for 2007 generated the following thoughtful response from a reader:
“I couldn’t agree more with your column/newsletter about mobility. The push for – and return to – thin clients will heat up in 2007, and for many of the reasons you’ve identified. One inevitable result, as we increase data availability, focusing on users’ needs and not the constraints of the historical platforms they’ve used, is that the confidentiality and security of the data they have access to will be called increasingly into question. The laptop theft and loss epidemic is about to get much, much worse as laptops morph into smart devices of all shapes, form factors, and sizes. Short-range wireless protocols, such as Bluetooth, will make interoperability between devices simpler and easier and convergence will mean more functionality is available. It’s going to be a field day for thieves, malicious third parties, and crackers/hackers. If there’s any subtext to the mobility headline, it’s that data is about to escape Pandora’s Box. And we will all find it very difficult to put it back in.”
This individual is absolutely right. The growth of mobility will create a wide variety of data security problems. For example, there are tens of thousands of cell phones, laptops and other portable data devices lost in taxis, on airplanes and in hotel rooms every year. It’s hard to avoid the news reports about the discovery that a laptop containing thousands of personal records has been lost. Add to this the employees who process their corporate e-mail and other data on their home computer – a home computer that stands a good chance of being part of a spammer’s botnet, thereby potentially exposing corporate data to unauthorized parties.
As unified communications becomes more widespread, the problem will become even worse as corporate mailboxes will contain a growing proportion of corporate records and other content.
How much of a concern is data loss for your organization? Is this a potential issue to consider dealing with or one that your organization is addressing right now? I’d appreciate hearing about your experiences in dealing with this issue.
