Protecting your mobiles from a rise in cybersecurity attacks
Think of a ransomware attack and most people think of a hacker targeting employees who use laptops or desktop devices. Yet hackers use as many avenues as possible to target your business and its data – and one of the key routes into organisations are mobile devices, due to the potentially significant and quick rewards.
Researchers suggest cyberattacks targeting smartphones and other mobile devices have risen by 50% in the first half of 2019 compared with last year. It's not just Android devices, either – evidence suggests that there are about 1.6 million campaigns currently trying to target iOS and Mac devices.
The number of attacks, including phishing, advanced malware, zero-day and ransomware attacks, is rising, with researcher Ponemon suggesting two-thirds (67%) of SMEs have experienced a cyberattack and 58 percent have suffered from a data breach in the past 12 months.
Effective mobile security is a moving target, with hackers always looking for new ways to attack your business. Take state-backed hacking campaigns, which increasingly use mobile devices to gather intelligence. Phones are a target because smartphone security often isn't taken seriously enough.
Yet despite the threat posed by hackers, many smaller firms have been slow to respond and to implement mobile security technology. Ponemon suggests almost half of SMEs (47%) say they have no understanding of how to protect their companies against cyberattacks.
The risk of a cyberattack means it's time to take another look at the security surrounding the mobile devices that are crucial part of modern business. More than two-thirds (67%) of SMEs strongly agree or agree that mobile solutions are changing how they work and collaborate, according to researcher SMB Group.
This reliance on mobile devices means there is an urgent need for small and medium-sized enterprise (SME) owners and managers to take a proactive approach to the external threat to their internal business processes. So, where should you and your colleagues start?
While there are many potential solutions to the cybersecurity risk, you should only use a trusted specialist that understands the requirements of smaller firms, both in terms of their potential for growth and their constrained resources. EE offers this exact service, offering SMEs a proactive cybersecurity solution that is easy to use and effective.
EE's Mobile Iron Threat Defence is an app that sits on your mobile device. It alerts users to potential attacks with pop-up messages and works hard to tell your staff whether they should, or should not, do something. The app uses machine-learning algorithms to detect known threats and zero-day threats on-device.
This proactive stance is the kind of approach to mobile security that will help your business and its mobile users to stay one step ahead of the hackers. Your role now is to find the most effective partner with the best long-term solutions, so your business can overcome any security challenges and face the future with confidence.
Find out more at https://ee.co.uk/business/small/network/
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- Digital transformation for SMEs: A short guide
- Five ways to make your business 5G-ready
- Five things to consider when your business moves to 5G
- How smartphones are boosting productivity for SMEs
- The impact of unlimited data on business
- Customer Service that makes mobile working for SMEs easier, not harder