Mobile security has long been a concern for organisations. Especially as data breaches can have catastrophic consequences. Now, with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) coming into full force in May 2018, businesses need to redouble their efforts.

Recently, the French Agence Nationale de la Sécurité Des Systèmes D’information (ANSSI) issued a list of recommendations on how to keep mobile data safe. Samsung have long been experts in this area and, here, we take these recommendations and break them down into seven simple steps.

The foundation of any mobile security policy should be to have device management capability and user profile management capability from a central point. Businesses need to look beyond Mobile Device Management (MDM) and embrace Enterprise Mobility Management (EMM).

Tip: During your GDPR risk assessment, don’t just focus on hardware security. Rather, look at user profiles, study device uses and the applications used and consider the sensitivity of the data. You may wish to opt for a global security management system such as Knox Manage.

Segmentation is hugely important when it comes to security. This means defining user profiles according to job functions, regulating access to admin tools to enable delegated management, and determining device assignment rules. With GDPR, the sensitivity of the data that users are dealing with must also be considered.

Tip: Knox Manage allows you to define user profiles, assign these profiles to devices and regulate access to admin tools. You can also delegate administration in a bespoke way.

You need to think not only about passwords but also the rules around them and access in general. For instance, how many attempts should you allow before you unlock a device and at what level

Tip: Knox Manage gives you highly customisable management of password rules.

With so many concerns about apps, we often forget that the operating system is the base of any device. If it’s compromised, the security of the entire mobile environment is at risk. This is why you need to verify the integrity of the OS every time a device is powered up and check the integrity of OS updates. A system updating strategy should be part of any mobile management framework.

Tip: Services such as Knox Configure, Knox Manage and Knox Workspace check the integrity of the OS. It’s also a good idea to block automatic updates and schedule updates for certain times. You should also check the compatibility of apps with updates and ensure the homogeneity of the device fleet.

App and data security is as important as OS integrity but there are two challenges. You need to impose a degree of control on the app “stores” and detect faults in installed apps. In both cases, the objective is to protect any personal data which is processed during the company’s activities.

Tip: Use security systems to “blacklist” and “whitelist” apps. For users who handle sensitive data, consider additional levels of security such as those in Knox Workspace.

Most people use work phones for personal use. You need to ensure that personal tools and apps do not jeopardise professional data as the company could be held responsible.

Tip: With solutions such as Knox Workspace, organisations can create “containers” within smartphones in which they control all the security rules. For users who handle personal or sensitive data, the entire contents of a container can be encrypted.

Phones get lost and stolen all the time – and this is one the biggest risks for companies. The solution here is to be able to securely wipe or lock devices remotely which means the thief gets the phone but not the data.

Tip: Knox Configure allows remote locking of devices and deletion of data. Knox Manage goes even further – and, along with remote locking and wiping allows the geolocation of the phone and potentially its retrieval.

As these recommendations demonstrate, ensuring data security can be a straightforward exercise with the right tools. Get the important elements in place and your people will be free to do their jobs, knowing that their organisation is doing everything it can to ensure the devices they depend on are as are secure as they can be.

Find out more about Samsung Knox solutions