How to Avoid Mobile Data Leakage and Data Breaches

According to Statista, 4.32 billion unique mobile internet users existed in 2021. By early 2022, mobile internet traffic had also increased to 55% of web usage. Even half a decade ago, mobile traffic predominantly resulted from personal use. Increasingly businesses have incorporated smartphones and tablets into business operations and hackers have taken note. Consequently, data leakage prevention and detection must now include provisions for mobile devices.

Train Your Workers

One Forbes article reports that employee activity contributes to 85% of recent data breaches. These breaches often result from human error or ignorance of how data security works and its importance. Training workers can close the knowledge gap and raise awareness. Training will not eliminate all risks, but it plays a substantial role in data leakage protection.

Effective training depends heavily on the type of training, how the company implements it, and the topics covered. Consider the following areas:

• What is data leakage?
• The types of mobile devices used in the workplace and their associated risks
• The importance of developing strong passwords
• How to encrypt data on mobile devices
• Best practices for storing, accessing, and sharing corporate data on mobile devices
• Data leakage statistics and the behaviors that contribute to breaches
• Data leakage examples and the resulting consequences for the company and individual parties involved

Install Security Software

Tech teams often only install antivirus and data leakage prevention tools on desktops and laptops. However, leaving mobile devices unprotected puts them at risk for malware attacks that could lead to data breaches. Businesses should install security software on all company-owned mobile devices to combat these threats. Here are some examples:

• Firewalls: They block unauthorized access to corporate networks and prevent malicious apps from infecting devices.
• Antivirus and anti-malware software: These scan devices for malware and viruses and remove any threats found.
• Encryption: This scrambles data so that it is unreadable by anyone who does not have the key to decrypt it.
• Mobile device management (MDM) software: It allows businesses to manage and secure all company-owned and personal mobile devices remotely.

Develop a Mobile Device Policy

A mobile device policy should outline how employees can use their work-issued mobile devices safely and securely. This includes iPhones. Employees often deprioritize data leakage iPhone concerns because users rely on Apple to secure the devices. However, this can encourage complacent behaviors regarding data protection.

The mobile device policy should also address what to do if a device is lost or stolen. Here are some elements that your mobile device policy should include:

• A list of approved mobile devices for work use
• Guidelines for how employees can use their work-issued mobile devices safely and securely
• What to do if a work-issued mobile device is lost or stolen
• How often employees should change their passwords
• A ban on downloading unauthorized apps

Use Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA)

IT teams have traditionally relied on virtual private networks (VPNs) to provide secure remote access to distributed workforces. But with increased scalability demands from remote users, and new security architecture demands of software-as-a-service and advanced cyber security threats in the cloud — VPNs and traditional network security tools simply can’t keep up. 

To help boost user productivity and granular security in remote work environments, many organizations are turning to more modern cloud-native security solutions such as zero-trust network access (ZTNA). ZTNA provides a comprehensive, multi-layered approach to security that helps keep your organization’s network and digital landscape safe in remote-work environments. 

Monitor Employee Activity

Employee activity monitoring (EAM) software can help businesses track how employees use work-issued mobile devices. EAM software can detect when an employee is trying to access sensitive data that they should not be able to retrieve. Businesses can quickly identify and address potential security threats by monitoring employee activity. EAM software is not always accurate, so businesses must investigate any potential security threats flagged.

Enforce Consequences

Businesses need to enforce consequences for employees who violate the mobile device policy. Otherwise, workers will not take the policy seriously and may be more likely to put corporate data at risk. Possible consequences for violating the mobile device policy could include the following:

• Warning(s)
• Suspension from using work-issued mobile devices
• Termination

Invest in Data Breach Insurance

There is no foolproof plan for eliminating breaches. Consequently, companies should always plan for the possibility and the cost of a breach. Data breaches can be expensive, so businesses need to invest in data breach insurance. This insurance can help enterprises to cover the cost of investigating and responding to a data breach. It can also help businesses cover the cost of any lawsuits arising from the breach.

Leverage Data Loss Prevention

Top archiving solutions implement DLP principles in the platform to secure enterprise and employee assets. These systems prioritize prevention. Additionally, they have provisions in place for early detection and immediate action. Data loss prevention most commonly prevents ransomware attacks by stopping unauthorized persons from transferring data outside the IT perimeter of the organization. This can save businesses millions of dollars while also protecting its reputation.

The Bottom Line

Our software solution at LeapXpert makes it easy for companies to meet compliance goals and maintain secure backups. We also leverage DLP principles to protect our clients’ data. Book a free demo to see how it works.