Symantec
deeply committed to stopping cybercrime and
raising greater public awareness of the steps
every person, family, organization, and business
can take to stay safe online. Cybercrime can
range from spam, phishing, targeted attacks,
online scams, etc. The 2013 Norton Report on
cybercrime found that 71 percent of adults in
the UAE have experienced cybercrime in their
lifetime. Within the past 12 months, the total
cost of cybercrime in the UAE was US$285m
and US$215 per victim.
Following a number of high-profile targeted
attacks across the region, Symantec witnessed
a growth in the security business as customers
became more aware of their security needs.
With this being the case, Symantec is investing
more in local resources in terms of sales
and delivery in order to address customers
on a more personal level, form relationships
and address needs as quickly as possible.
Symantec predicts this trend to continue over
the next few years.
As the lines between personal and work are
getting blurred with more employees using
one device for both, what kind of securities
need to be in place?
BYOD lends itself to more productivity
and freedom for employees. However, IT
departments are challenged with the need
to protect and control corporate information
regardless of the device it is on and without
hindering the efficiency BYOD enables.
Concerns are wide-ranging, from lost and
stolen devices, data leakage, unauthorized
access to corporate resources and the spread
22
Issue 01
of malware infections from mobile devices to
the company network. With mobile devices now
delivering critical business processes and data,
the cost of security incidents can be significant.
As more employees connect their personal
devices to the corporate network, organizations
should modify their acceptable usage policies
to accommodate both corporate-owned and
personally-owned devices. Management and
security levels will need to differ based on
ownership of the device and the associated
controls that the organization requires.
Employees will continue to add devices to the
corporate network to make their jobs more
efficient and enjoyable so organizations must
plan for this legally, operationally and culturally.
Having a BYOD-ready network doesn’t
require a complete redesign of IT infrastructure,
but businesses should prioritize educating
employees about mobile threats and protecting
business-critical information that employees
are accessing remotely. Businesses can use
mobile device management (MDM) and mobile
application management (MAM) tools to help
maintain an inventory of the devices connecting
to company resources and also make sure
employees are adhering to policies. Reputable
MDM tools also allow businesses to ensure both
personal and company-owned mobile devices
are wiped of business information if an employee
leaves the company or a device is lost or stolen.
What is the level of awareness for cyber
security here? How can it be increased?
The 2013 Norton Report, 56 percent of mobile
device users in the UAE are unaware that
For more information, please write to [email protected]
Symantec is deeply
committed to
stopping cybercrime
and raising greater
public awareness
of the steps every
person, family,
organization, and
business can take to
stay safe online.
security s