BYOD poses security challenges for companies

According to a new report from Juniper Research, the number of employee-owned smartphones and tablets used in the enterprise will more than double over the next two years and will eventually reach 350 million by 2017.

Though the proliferation of the "bring your own device" or BYOD concept has reaped productivity benefits for businesses, it has also raised significant questions about the security of company data that is being loaded onto those personal mobile devices.

In fact,  the "Mobile Security Strategies: Threats, Solutions & Market Forecasts 2012-2017" report found that the majority of employee-owned  phones and other devices did not have any security software loaded on them and that company data was not protected.

"While BYOD has become an inevitable trend for the enterprise, businesses need to create new end-user IT policies and address the key security issues emerging. New device management policies and security measures need to be put in place," said report author Nitin Bhas

Among the report’s other findings include:

• The public sector will be late adopters of BYOD
• Western Europe will account for the highest number of consumer-owned devices within the enterprise

Click here for more information about the report.