Providing email on a few executive iPads is a relatively simple matter that may be addressed easily with any of a number of mobile device management solutions. But what is the next step? Smart phones and tablets are the newest endpoints and may soon outnumber laptops, and productivity in the future will rely more heavily on these new devices. Supporting mobile access, connectivity, data protection, support, applications, etc. will take more than MDM, just as managing and protecting laptops and PCs relies on an entire ecosystem of enterprise solutions.
Email and Network Access
For this use case, the requirements for mobile devices may include connecting to a mail server, providing network access through VPN configuration, and probably enforcing a password policy. With this MDM-centric approach, it is then easy to add additional functionality, like Mobile Security for threat protection, Managed PKI, and Data Loss Prevention, as each of these complementary products are integrated into Mobile Management.
Cloud Access Control
Mobile users access cloud services at a very high rate, including for business use, and corporate IT traditionally has had no way to monitor or control this behavior. Yet when business data is involved, it is imperative that this visibility exists. Symantec’s O3 cloud gateway provides the necessary visibility for business productivity in the cloud, with single sign–on, federated identity across multiple services, and full visibility and control over transactions.Custom Business Apps
71% of businesses are already moving toward custom applications as a key element in their mobile strategy. These apps will have access to critical business networks and data, so they must be appropriately secured and protected. IT managers can easily secure these communications and protect data from theft and loss with application specific controls using Symantec App Center. Line of business and custom applications may be protected after development to provide additional controls, like requiring additional user authentication, encrypting all stored data, destroying expired stored data, blocking access on rooted or jail broken devices, blocking the APIs that allow document sharing, and others.
