“BYOD” or “bring your own device” (also known as the “consumerization of IT”) is a fact of life in today’s workplace. BYOD refers to the practice of using personally owned devices—like smartphones, tablets, and laptops—for work purposes and allowing these devices to connect to company networks and applications. According to a Gartner study released in late 2014, 40% of U.S. employees working for large companies use personally owned devices for work purposes. Of those who reported using personally owned devices, only 25% were required by their employers to do so. And of the 75% who chose to use their personally owned devices for work, half did so without their employers’ knowledge.
If that last statistic doesn’t alarm you a little, it should.
BYOD can be great for productivity, but it also creates risk for companies. Why? Because personally owned devices are not managed or controlled by company IT, and security of the device is in the hands of the employee. In other words, these devices can be a source of company data loss or data leakage. For example, if an unencrypted personal laptop with company data on it gets lost or stolen, you may have a data breach on your hands.
So how do you address these concerns? Start with a written, employee-acknowledged BYOD policy.
Here are five things to consider as you develop your policy:
1. Start by building an interdisciplinary team to create the policy. The team should include IT, human resources, legal, compliance, and employees who use their personally owned devices. BYOD is not just an IT issue but also a legal and business issue. Different perspectives will help lead to a policy that fits your organization’s needs and is capable of being followed.
2. Develop the goals of the policy. Security should be a goal but productivity is also important. Cost savings may also be an objective. These, and other goals, may be in tension at times. In the end, you want to develop a policy that strikes the right balance for your company. Consider a BYOD policy that ensures the only way enterprise data flows into or out from a device is through enterprise systems (e.g., avoid emailing business information to employee personal email accounts).
3. Determine which employees are covered and how they are covered. There may be different policies for different types of employees based on job type or function. For example, the policy for exempt employees may be different than the one for non-exempt employees. Consider whether all employees need to be able to use tablets (for example) to access corporate data for work purposes. Be sure to consult with counsel about employment laws and regulations that may apply in this area.
4. Decide which devices/uses are permitted and how the policy applies to each. For example, the BYOD team should conduct “app reviews” to decide what apps are okay for business use and what apps are not allowed. Particular types of smartphones, tablets, or laptops may not meet the company’s security requirements and, if not, should not be permitted. Also, the policy for smartphones may be different than the policy for laptops because they are different devices used in different ways and may pose different security risks.
5. Build in training so that each employee knows the policy and how it applies to him or her. In the end, security is about people just as much as it is about technology.
This isn’t an exhaustive list of considerations, but it will help get you started crafting a BYOD policy tailored to your company. It’s important that you do so, if you haven’t already.
Add a comment
Archives
- January 2022
- June 2021
- March 2020
- August 2019
- March 2019
- October 2018
- July 2016
- June 2016
- May 2016
- February 2016
- November 2015
- September 2015
- July 2015
- April 2015
- March 2015
- February 2015
- January 2015
- December 2014
- November 2014
- October 2014
- July 2014
- March 2014
- July 2013
- June 2013
- April 2013
- March 2013
- October 2012
- September 2012
- August 2012
- April 2012
- March 2012
- February 2012
- January 2012
- November 2011
- September 2011
- June 2011
- May 2011
- April 2011
- February 2011
- January 2011
- December 2010
- October 2010
- September 2010
- August 2010
- July 2010
- June 2010
- May 2010
- April 2010
- March 2010
- February 2010
- January 2010
- December 2009
- November 2009
- October 2009
- September 2009
- August 2009
- July 2009
- June 2009
- May 2009
- April 2009
- March 2009
- February 2009
- January 2009
- December 2008
- November 2008
- October 2008
- September 2006
- February 2006
Recent Posts
- Rethinking Your Cyber Insurance Needs as Your Workplace Evolves
- Data Breach Defense for Educational Institutions
- COVID-19 and the Increased Cybersecurity Risk in a Work-From-Home World
- Like Incorporating Facebook into your Website? EU Decision Raises New Issues
- Lessons Learned: Key Takeaways for Every Business from the Capital One Data Breach
- Will Quick Talks to WRAL About Privacy Issues Related to Doorbell Cameras
- About Us
- Not in My House - California to Regulate IoT Device Security
- Ninth Circuit Says You’re Going to Jail for Visiting That Website without Permission
- Ninth Circuit Interprets “Without Authorization” under the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act
Topics
- Data Security
- Data Breach
- Privacy
- Cyberattack
- Defamation
- Public Records
- FCC Matters
- Reporters Privilege
- Digital Media and Data Privacy Law
- Political Advertising
- Newsroom Subpoenas
- Shield Laws
- Internet
- Miscellaneous
- Indecency
- First Amendment
- Anti-SLAPP Statutes
- Fair Report Privilege
- Prior Restraints
- Education
- Wiretapping
- Access to Courtrooms
- FOIA
- Privacy Policies
- HIPAA
- Drone Law
- Access to Court Dockets
- Access to Search Warrants
- Intrusion
- First Amendment Retaliation
- Mobile Privacy
- Newsroom Search Warrants
- About This Blog
- Services
- Disclaimer