How To

What Makes the Ideal Mobile Security Solution?

The growing complexity and inevitable “cloudification” of the IT industry brings new challenges to businesses every day, and a rapid movement toward the use of mobile devices for remote work adds to the obstacles.

Applications and data are anywhere and everywhere, so enterprise leaders need to address security at every turn. With the ideal mobile security solution, a major branch of modern IT operations will be under airtight protection.

Key Takeaways:

Every security strategy should include zero trust principles as a best practice, and that extends especially to the use of mobile devices.
Specific tools and technologies, such as endpoint protection and VPNs, are necessary for securing the connection to remote locations.
Mobile access to corporate resources entails heavy reliance on the cloud, so cloud-specific security measures are also a must.

IT decision-makers overseeing the process of implementing mobile devices for remote work can proceed with peace of mind by understanding just what goes into the ideal security solution for mobile deployments.

What is a mobile security solution?

A mobile security solution is one designed specifically to protect sensitive information stored, transmitted, or accessed by a smartphone, laptop, tablet, or any other mobile device. This branch of a company’s security strategy is crucial as the concept of remote work continues to gain increasing popularity.

Mobile security has become a mainstay component in the overall digital security strategy of any enterprise. It is important not only because portable devices are ubiquitous today, but also because of the increased adoption of the cloud.

Not only are consumers and app users accessing the cloud with their mobile devices for the sake of gaming, communicating, or utilizing services, but internal employees are also accessing the cloud from laptops and phones for remote work sessions and data storage.

Without a robust mobile security solution, both employees and employers are susceptible to data loss and financial risks while accessing the enterprise cloud over network connections such as WiFi or cellular networks while working from home.

Mobile security best practices

A strong security solution starts with adherence to industry-proven best practices. Whether discussing traditional or mobile security, the best approach is to follow a “zero trust” philosophy that entails treating every network, application, server, and user as an agent that could compromise security on a company-wide scale.

Zero trust security implies that the network does not trust any internal or external entity to gain access without first receiving authentication, authorization, and accounting. To that end, a comprehensive zero trust security strategy should include best practices such as:

Strong authentication mechanisms such as MFA (multifactor authentication) and biometric verification.
Antivirus software to aid in detecting and eliminating malware.
Encryption solutions such as data-at-rest encryption to protect sensitive information.
VPNs (Virtual Private Networks) to secure data transmission over unreliable network connections.

Another best practice to follow when building out a mobile security solution is to create enforceable company policies surrounding the use of mobile devices. Common examples include frequent password update requirements, remote device wipe policies, and strict bring-your-own-device criteria.

Additionally, it is prudent to ensure that workers maintain good common sense habits such as avoiding public Wi-Fi and unnecessary app downloads when using mobile company devices and clicking on emails from unreliable sources. Exposure to these outside elements can lead to the spread of malware, so it may be worth considering the proactive installation of app blockers as another security measure.

Use the right mobile security tools

Policies and procedures are not enough on their own to constitute an airtight mobile security solution. Enterprise leaders should also implement a number of security tools and technologies as additional layers of protection against cyber threats.

Email security - Security-as-a-service solutions such as antivirus, antispam, and content control services can adequately secure both incoming and outgoing emails.

Virtual private networks - VPNs use encryption technology to extend a private network through public networks as a “tunnel,” ensuring secure access to corporate resources even from a potentially unsecured location.

Endpoint protection - When a mobile device attempts to connect to a network, both that device and the internal location are endpoints in that connection. Competent endpoint protection technology allows for monitoring and alerts that empower IT staff to react to issues at any endpoint before a problem can arise.

Secure gateways - Web gateways enforce security protocols on any connection made over the web, as is the case when mobile devices attempt to access resources in the cloud.

Enterprise mobility management - EMM refers to the entire platform from which IT admins can manage and maintain practices for static and mobile security solutions across the entire organization.

Cloud access security broker - It is inevitable that workers operating mobile devices from remote locations will need to utilize resources from the cloud, and a cloud access security broker serves as a necessary enforcement point that ensures company security policies apply to each and every access request.

Protection in the cloud

The operation of mobile devices for enterprise use often, if not always, entails accessing the enterprise cloud to acquire the necessary resources for work. This means that not only must the mobile devices and the connection stemming from them be secure, but the cloud itself needs proper protection.

The ideal cloud security solution exists on a foundation of firewalls, intrusion detection, and encryption of data while it is in motion and at rest. Additionally, the cloud platform itself should have an emphasis on access management as well as compliance protocols.

For a deep dive on the power of the Nutanix Cloud Platform (NCP) and how it can improve your security, take a look at the Nutanix Starter Kit.

Gartner forecasts that due to factors including the rise of remote work and zero trust initiatives, information security spending will increase 11.3% in 2023 from the previous year. Cloud security, in particular, is on course to see the strongest growth among security spending categories.

Companies that follow the trend of strengthening protection in the cloud as a mobile security solution can see benefits such as reduced costs, increased reliability, and improved centralization that makes it possible to monitor entire networks and deploy solutions from one single control plane.

The ideal mobile security solution for the multicloud era

Enforcing capable mobile security may seem like a straightforward project for enterprise leaders who understand the importance of zero trust best practices and the implementation of security tools across networks and in the cloud.

However, fulfilling those security needs can be difficult when companies must also overcome the complexity of managing a complex multicloud environment.

Nutanix Flow is a network security solution that protects critical data, applications, and other assets while accommodating both on-premises hardware as well as mobile devices. As part of the Nutanix platform, Flow also places an emphasis on simplicity in improving zero trust initatives, automation, and integration in any enterprise setting, even those operating in an otherwise complex multicloud setup.

With the ideal mobile security solution, businesses can confidently place data and applications at any location in the multicloud ecosystem without fear of loss or leaks when mobile devices access resources remotely.

Learn more about risk management at the datacenter level as well as enterprise data protection.

“The Nutanix “how-to” info blog series is intended to educate and inform Nutanix users and anyone looking to expand their knowledge of cloud infrastructure and related topics. This series focuses on key topics, issues, and technologies around enterprise cloud, cloud security, infrastructure migration, virtualization, Kubernetes, etc. For information on specific Nutanix products and features, visit here.”