For the uninitiated, BYOD stands for ‘bring your own device.’ It is a growing trend in the business world with employees deciding to take their personal laptops, smartphones, tablets, and USB drives into the workplace. With these devices, they can complete their tasks and access work-related systems.
While BYOD strategies are growing in popularity, there are various points to consider before you implement them in your business. This is because if it’s done wrong, it could cripple your company in an instant.
The benefits of BYOD
Before examining the possible dangers of BYOD and how to implement it effectively, it’s important to understand why it is becoming a prevalent choice with employees.
- Reduces costs: As employees are bringing in their own equipment, there’s no need for your business to splash out on additional devices.
- Productivity boost: Due to the nature of BYOD, your employees will always have access to their devices. This means that, rather than being restricted to office hours, they can work on their laptops/tablets/smartphones anywhere, anytime.
- Increases satisfaction: Instead of using standard-issue devices supplied by your company, employees will be much more comfortable – and happier – doing work on their own gear.
- No update issues: As your business isn’t relied upon for hardware and software upgrades, this is one less aspect to worry about. Plus, employees will usually implement updates when they’re available or necessary.
The importance of security
Arguably the biggest concern of running with BYOD is the security risk it presents. If proper security measures are not put into place, it leaves your entire company at risk. Hackers could bypass any lax protection, and this might lead to stolen data, destruction of your business network, and more.
With this in mind, security is of the utmost importance. To start you off, you should install a McAfee CASB system. It doesn’t matter what device is used – with this system, every cloud-based aspect of your business is protected.
To further enhance security measures, make it mandatory that all devices must be password protected. The password itself needs to be strong, with a healthy mixture of upper and lowercase letters, symbols, and numbers. Passwords should also be changed on a somewhat frequent basis.
Additionally, all employees should be warned against downloading software or apps from unauthorized sources. Ideally, your business can provide approved software options to employees.
Setting a BYOD policy
Along with the previous points about security, it’s integral your business has a general policy in place for BYOD. By offering clear guidelines, your company will retain its integrity, while employees will know how to avoid any BYOD-related issues.
This policy can incorporate many different facets, including:
- Company-approved websites during work hours.
- Disallowed activities during work hours.
- Specific brands and operating systems for devices.
- Will costs such as data roaming and replacing equipment be covered at least in part by the company?
- Stolen or lost devices should be reported within 24 hours.
- A notice that states that all workers assume full liability for their devices.
Ultimately, BYOD can be a fantastic feature for your business. It just needs to be implemented with care and attention. When that happens, it will help reduce costs, increase productivity, and boost worker satisfaction.
