Danger comes in small packages: Securing employees' mobile devices

Whether your company provides workers with mobile devices or allows them to bring their own, you have to be vigilant. If your employees work outside the office with their tablets or smartphones, they’re walking around town with your data in small, easy-to-lose, easy-to-steal containers. Should any of those devices go missing, there’s a lot more at stake than the cost of the hardware.

Following these basic procedures will help keep your company safe from mobile threats.

Insist on mobile antivirus apps
Almost everyone knows that they need an antivirus program for their Windows PC, but few understand the necessity of running a similar tool on their mobile device. According to Symantec's Internet Security Threat Report for 2014, 57 percent of adults didn't even know that such tools existed. But here's the really scary part: Only 44 percent were equally ignorant in 2012. In other words, the average person knows less about mobile security now than they did two years ago.

Android attracts more malware than iOS by a very large margin. According to Kaspersky Lab's Mobile Cyber Threats report, published this October, "98.05% of all existing mobile malware targets the users of Android devices." The ability to download apps from sources other than the office Play Store, and the irregular way updates get pushed to devices make Android a tempting target.

But iPhone and iPad users shouldn't be complacent. iOS has its share of vulnerabilities. What's more, malware that latches onto applications doesn't really care about the operating system; if the OS can support the app, the app can support the malware.

Think data, not device
Losing a smartphone is an inconvenience. Letting the data on it fall into the wrong hands is a disaster. According to Adam Ely, Co-Founder of Bluebox Security, "79% of companies reported a mobile data breach, with the cost of data loss ranging from less than $10K to over $500K per incident." That's a lot more than the cost of a phone.

The first line of defense: Secure the mobile device with a sufficiently complex password. You might also consider other techniques for locking a phone. Add more protection by encrypting company data (a locked phone doesn't help much if the Micro SD card inside is open), and a mobile-to-company-server backup routine.

Use a Virtual Private Network
Criminals don't need to steal a smartphone to read the data flowing from that phone to the Internet.

That's why your company needs to use a VPN to encrypt the data as it journeys between the mobile device and the network. A good VPN provides more than just encrypted data. It can track who's accessing the network, authenticate users, and allow employees to access company applications in the field.

Respect your employees' privacy
If you don't handle your company's BYOD policy properly, your employees may look at you with the same lack of trust that American citizens reserve for the NSA. As Ely explained, "it is important to maintain boundaries between work and personal use on an employee’s personal device. Users are rightfully worried that their privacy will be compromised if they use their personal device for work purposes."

Your BYOD policy must spell out clearly what rights belong to the employee and the company. Prepare a clear statement that defines the circumstances in which the company will open private files. Also, the employee must understand ahead of time that the device may be wiped remotely should it be lost.

Make it easy
If a user must go through eight security steps before they can get to work, they will find a way around those steps. After all, they're being paid to be productive, not to enter multiple passwords and prove that they really are themselves. According to Ely, "No matter how robust a mobile device program is it will not succeed without the support of the end users."

So keep ease of use in mind when designing a secure system. Require fewer passwords, and use automated encryption technologies that don't require many user interactions.

Another way to simplify: Design easy-to-use systems, and help employees when the systems aren't as easy as they should be, and offer convenient options like remote access to help them get fast support from your help desk if they need it. "Support must be a priority," warns Ely. And "focus on product design to minimize issues, prioritize quality testing and populate…support portal with how-to’s and FAQs."

Going mobile has considerable risks and considerable benefits. You need to lower the first so you can make the most of the later.

Billionaire Paul Allen donates 10,000 smartphones to the Ebola battle

Billionaire Paul Allen is sending more than 10,000 smartphones to West Africa to help in the battle against Ebola.

The Microsoft co-founder’s Paul G. Allen Family Foundation is providing the specially-programmed phones in an attempt to help government workers and aid volunteers gather data about the effectiveness of relief efforts in the disease-ravaged region.

“We need reliable data to understand what is going on in impacted areas to get ahead of the Ebola crisis,” said Allen, in a statement released on Monday.

The smartphones are the philanthropist’s latest contribution to the Ebola battle.

Last month Allen said that he would increase his contribution to fighting the deadly disease to at least $100 million. In September the philanthropist donated $9 million to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention to support the fight against Ebola.

While a number of the phones were purchased by the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation, others were gifts from companies.

As part of Allen’s existing commitment to tackle Ebola, he also announced a grant to communications specialist NetHope on Monday. NetHope is an international consortium of NGOs devoted to improving emergency response organizations’ IT communications.   

“NetHope is working closely with the U.N. and all of the large response organizations to identify the gaps in communications capacity,” said Allen. “Today, we are committing resources to boost communication and data collection capabilities to more effectively fight Ebola in West Africa.”

Allen’s donation to NetHope will help establish a fund to boost connectivity at 45 locations, as well as the deployment of up to 10 satellite communication terminals. The grant will also fund a number of short-term private sector projects to extend mobile capacity, as well as helping mobile operators widen their existing networks.

Technology is becoming a key weapon in the fight against Ebola. Last month, for example, IBM launched an analytics system to help track the spread of the deadly disease in Sierra Leone.

The system developed by IBM’s Nairobi, Kenya-based Africa research lab and Sierra Leone’s Government lets citizens report Ebola-related issues and concerns via text message or phone calls. The goal is to provide the country’s government with insight into communities affected by Ebola and improve its strategy for containing the disease.

Android Lollipop update causes problems

Users have reported Adobe Air-based apps being wiped from their handsets

Early adopters of Google's latest Android operating system are warning others of problems with the software.

Issues include the update causing Nexus 7 tablets to run slowly and repeatedly crash, with several users complaining they had become "unusable".

The code also appears to remove apps built with Adobe Air and then prevent them from being reinstalled.

Adobe said it had not been aware of this "critical" bug before Tuesday and had escalated it with Google.

A spokesman for the search firm was unable to comment at this time.

'Shockingly bad'
Android 5.0 - also known as Lollipop - is described as a "quantum leap forward" by Google and has attracted several positive reviews, fuelling desire for the software.

It revamps the system's user interface, offers greater control over notifications, and makes changes to the way the OS executes code, which Google said should mean fewer "temporary glitches" than before.

At the moment, it is only available to a limited number of machines, because many network operators and device manufacturers have yet to complete their own tests.

However, owners of Nexus-branded machines - which are sold by Google itself - can install the software by downloading it from the firm's website or, in the case of the Asus-made Nexus 7, accepting an over-

Samsung Had A Plan To End Android, But It's Failing

For the past two years, Samsung has been working on its own smartphone operating system, called "Tizen."

Tizen is very similar to Android. It's open source, meaning any smartphone maker can use it for free.

It's also a way for Samsung to wean itself off Android and use its own software instead. The theory goes that Samsung is ceding a lot of potential revenue to Google because it has to offer customers Google's app store and other services if it wants to keep using Android.

Samsung is the biggest Android phone maker in the world, but it's still giving a ton of control over its future to Google.

Yet, it sounds like Tizen is faltering. Samsung's chief architect of Tizen, Taesoon Jun, told CNET's Shara Tibken recently that the company is shifting its plans for the operating system. Instead of loading Tizen on high-end phones with specs similar to the Galaxy S5 or Galaxy Note 4, Samsung will put it on cheap phones to compete at the low-end of the smartphone market.

That's a troubling sign for Samsung, which has been struggling all year to combat dwindling smartphone sales and profits. Profits were down nearly 50% in the third quarter, and Samsung blamed increased competition from other smartphone makers.

For example, the Chinese startup Xiaomi makes phones with high-end specs similar to what you'd find in Samsung's best phones, but sells them for about half the price. Xiaomi is now the third largest smartphone maker in the world in terms of unit sales.

Still, Tizen isn't just for phones. Samsung also uses the operating system on several of its smartwatches, which is seen as the next major product category for mobile device makers. On the other hand, Samsung's watches have been poorly reviewed and there aren't any indications that they've been selling very well.

Samsung is still very profitable, but its next challenge is to find a way to differentiate its phones from the competition in order to stop its drastic decline in profits. The best way to do that would be to innovate on the software level, and Tizen was a big opportunity for Samsung. But it seems like it's just another Android clone that will be used in cheap phones.

Samsung realizes it’s making too many phones, will cut lineup by 30%

The world’s largest maker of smartphones just made an unexpected announcement — Samsung says it’s going to start making fewer phones. Despite how odd that sounds, this “less-is-more” approach is probably the safest thing Samsung can do in the face of flagging sales. The company says it’s giving the axe to as much as 30% of its product lineup for next year, and it’s a big lineup. Even with the 30% reduction, Samsung will probably make a few dozen different phones.

Samsung enjoyed incredible profits quarter after quarter until earlier this year. In a quarter when it should have been raking in the dough from sales of the just-released Galaxy S5, its profits actually decreased, a trend that has since continued. When consumers couldn’t get enough of its devices, Samsung could afford to make a different phone for every niche, but now? That’d be foolish.

This plan to reduce the number of device it makes is how Samsung intends to stay on top as Chinese Android OEMs continue their rise. Companies like Huawei, ZTE, and Lenovo have started making more desirable phones and pushing outside of their traditional Asian markets. In fact, Lenovo just completed its purchase of Motorola, which is making some of the best Android phones you can get. That has to make Samsung nervous.

Samsung’s decision to pare down its device offerings mirrors the actions of another Android OEM — HTC. After taking an early and commanding lead in the Android device ecosystem, HTC fell upon hard times when it started making too many phones, most of which were mediocre. HTC cut things down drastically to just a handful of models each year, which has allowed it to focus on reducing costs and remain afloat. It’s not clear sailing for HTC just yet, and that’s probably the scenario Samsung wants to avoid by pivoting now. Basically, Samsung doesn’t want to end up like HTC, just scraping by after being overtaken by the competition.

So far in 2014, Samsung has released 56 smartphones. Some of these you will have heard of like the Galaxy S5, Galaxy Note 4, and the Galaxy Alpha. But have you ever heard of the Samsung Galaxy Star 2 Plus or the Galaxy Ace Style LTE? Of course not — no one has. The only people who might know the name of those phones are the engineers who designed them and the handful of people who bought one because it was cheap.

It’s not just the low end that needs trimming. A niche device like the Galaxy K Zoom is not cheap to make, but goes against the trends in mobile — and why six different versions of the Galaxy S5? Samsung spent time and money designing and sourcing parts for phones like these that didn’t have much of an impact, so why bother? A few entry level devices based on the Galaxy S line would do the job more cheaply. By working to standardize its internal design and, the company hopes to reduce its costs even more with better control of its supply chain.

This change in direction won’t mean much for you in the short term. There’s still going to be a Galaxy S6 and Note 5. If there is a drawback to this, it might be that Samsung won’t take as many risks with seemingly weird devices. The first Galaxy Note was seen as a wild shot in the dark at the time, but now Note devices are hugely popular. We can only hope Samsung doesn’t “less-is-more” itself into obsolescence.