Intelligent CIO Europe Issue 08 | Page 50

FEATURE: MOBILE SECURITY material to malicious actors. Protecting users regardless of location or device; the benefits of VPN use are clear. VPNs can help to overcome the issue of using Wi-Fi hotspots in vulnerable public locations by extending a private network over the unsecured Internet connections offered in cafés, hotels or wherever the user might be. ////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////////// OUTRIGHT BANNING PUBLIC WI-FI HOTSPOTS CAN REDUCE EMPLOYEE MOBILITY AND DAMAGE EMPLOYER- EMPLOYEE RELATIONS. In general, more broad awareness of security issues for mobile workers has meant that the usage of VPNs is steadily increasing. In 2016, iPass found that just 26% of enterprises were confident mobile workers were using a VPN when they went online, but that figure has risen to 46% in 2018. Though VPN services are being offered to mobile workers more widely, less than half of CIOs are fully confident that mobile workers use a VPN every time they go online. This undoubtedly calls into question the protection that VPNs actually deliver, despite broad awareness of security issues rising among mobile workers. One of the issues holding back widespread use of VPNs is, thankfully, rectifiable. Businesses looking to increase the numbers of mobile workers using VPNs when they go online need to properly educate staff on the potential damage not using them can cause the business. This practice will make sure that both the implementation and use of VPNs is as seamless for the end-user as possible. The decision by some companies to