The Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) trend is growing, and it’s growing steadily, and security options regarding personal devices in the workplace has been lagging behind. Avast Mobile Enterprise has been following this trend and have developed a solution specific for BYOD – virtual mobile infrastructure (VMI).
The current system for dealing with security concerns revolving around the BYOD trend has met a brick wall. Employers report that they aren’t happy with the current security available for mobile devices, and employees report that they aren’t happy with the invasion of privacy route some of these security solutions take.
Mobile device management systems (MDM) have been met with raised eyebrows, and in some cases have even stalled BYOD attempts in its tracks because of its perceived Orwellian “Big Brother” aspect. Employees don’t want software on their phones that can access personal information.
This is where Avast comes in with its VMI solution: the Avast Virtual Mobile Platform (VMP).
“We thought the best solution to provide security was to remove the data aspect completely from the actual mobile device, while still preserving that mobile experience,” said Sinan Eren, vice president of Avast, over the phone with CDN.
The Avast VMP allows organizations to deploy a “virtual mobile device” that has custom and third-party applications on any device on the cloud. Meaning, through an application, organizations can separate the ‘business’ from the ‘personal’ by creating a virtual simulation of a smartphone device on a smartphone for the singular use of business operations.
Related Stories
The security solution targets security concerns such as data leakage, lack of access control, and advanced persistent threats by removing the data from the device completely. When accessing Avast VMP on a smartphone, everything done is saved and collected on the cloud, and off the device, preventing data from being accessed if the device is lost or stolen.
Since no data is being stored on the device, this prevents events such as remote wiping, that would otherwise remove corporate data as well as personal data, creating that distance between the ‘business’ and ‘personal’.
“There is no access into your call logs, your messages, your pictures, and your location. There is no possibility of IT being inside your device. All these ways to separate your work needs and personal needs make this a very appealing solution for our partners,” said Eren.
The BYOD market is projected to grow from US$35 billion this year to US$73 billion by 2021. In order to address the security concerns that come with this growing market, VMI solutions may be the answer.