65 Percent of Kaspersky Lab Survey Participants Say Bring Your Own Device is a Business Security Risk

Companies Vary in Efforts to Address Using Personal Mobile Devices in the Workplace

Woburn, MA – December 16, 2013 – According to the Global Corporate IT Security Risks 2013 survey, conducted by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, 65 percent of survey participants see a threat in the Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) trend to their business. However, only 10 percent of respondents stated that they would enforce a strict prohibition on employees using their personal devices for work purposes. The overall survey results show a growing concern about BYOD, but divided opinions about the best way to combat the threats BYOD brings to a business.

In addition to the 10 percent who would like to ban employees from using personal devices to access company data, 25 percent plan to limit the number and type of employees that can bring their own devices to work. At the same time, a majority of companies are looking for ways to embrace BYOD while still keeping company data secure. According to the survey, 31 percent stated they would actively allow more employees to use their personal devices for work purposes, while 34 percent did not believe that prohibitive measures would prevent employees from using their own devices.

Growing business concerns around BYOD is a direct result of the possible threats posed by mobile devices. The survey also showed that the improper use of these devices is a frequent cause of IT security incidents, resulting in the loss of critical company data. Around 18 percent (2 percent more than in 2012) of respondents said their companies had suffered confidential data leaks because of information leaked via a mobile device.

Comparatively, few companies are adopting specialized software products to protect their corporate network against such threats. Around 40 percent of companies are using antivirus solutions for mobile devices and only 24 percent use Mobile Device Management solutions.

The need for mobile security and management

As BYOD becomes more common, companies will need to increasingly consider implementing a centralized management of all employee mobile devices. For example, Kaspersky Security for Mobile is available either as a targeted solution or as a component of Kaspersky Endpoint Security for Business. This solution lets administrators secure and protect data, even on employees’ own smartphones and tablets. Mobile endpoint protection can be deployed remotely through centralized Mobile Device Management (MDM). With a single unified administrative console, all corporate endpoints, including BYOD mobile devices, can be managed together in one integrated security platform.

About Kaspersky Lab
Kaspersky Lab is the world’s largest privately held vendor of endpoint protection solutions. The company is ranked among the world’s top four vendors of security solutions for endpoint users*. Throughout its more than 15-year history Kaspersky Lab has remained an innovator in IT security and provides effective digital security solutions for large enterprises, SMBs and consumers. Kaspersky Lab, with its holding company registered in the United Kingdom, currently operates in almost 200 countries and territories across the globe, providing protection for over 300 million users worldwide. Learn more at www.kaspersky.com.

* The company was rated fourth in the IDC rating Worldwide Endpoint Security Revenue by Vendor, 2011. The rating was published in the IDC report "Worldwide Endpoint Security 2012–2016 Forecast and 2011 Vendor Shares (IDC #235930, July 2012). The report ranked software vendors according to earnings from sales of endpoint security solutions in 2011.

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Media Contact
Sarah Bergeron
781.503.2615
sarah.bergeron@kaspersky.com