Enterprise-Level Mobile and IoT Securityv1.0

1. Summary

Mobile devices have become ubiquitous within the enterprise over the last decade moving from shadow implementations to mainstream for extended communications, even providing user two-factor authentication for many applications today. This evolution has progressed to include many IoT devices, most initially tied to mobile devices in some way, that work their way into everyday tasks. Whether they be simple monitoring devices or complex data gathering and distribution devices in the field, these IoT devices, as well as mobile devices, have become an indispensable set of tools and hardware for today’s transformed enterprise.

Given the rapid pace of technology, security has often lagged behind the implementation of mobile and IoT in the enterprise. While most CISOs have a mobile security plan that includes mobile device management (MDM), most MDMs do not adequately protect systems and data from intrusions via mobile device applications from unsecured WiFi networks. Furthermore, MDM lacks the capability to extend to IoT devices that run independently of mobile devices. This has resulted in a new category of applications focused on mobile threat detection (MTD). MTD extends the standard capabilities to IoT devices, with the goal of catching more threats, reducing false-positives,  and minimizing the time required to detect and remediate.

This market landscape report focuses on the players in the industry who are offering this next generation of security protection to the enterprise. This report will provide C-level executives and security professionals with an overview of threat detection and management solutions available in the mobile and IoT markets.

Key findings:

• MTD products have advanced significantly in the last few years, and are now well integrated with most standard MDM products on the market. These products have been narrowed to focus on a two-horse race between iOS and Android-based devices.
• Differentiations between MTD products focus on two main areas: 1) deep-learning capabilities; 2) extended functionality. Choices for security professionals will be determined by specific needs beyond the basic protections offered as well as by looking at vendor reputation for areas such as zero-day threats and ransomware attacks.
• Baseline enterprise requirements, including preventing man-in-the-middle attacks, jailbreaking, and phishing attacks, have become table stakes for MTD providers.
• IoT continues to be an issue for MTD products that traditionally have only focused on mobile device and network protection. IoT based devices that connect via mobile OS’ can take advantage of MTD to assist in protecting against threats, but this protection does not extend to independent devices connecting to networks directly.
• The proliferation of IoT devices is becoming a growing concern in the threat detection area, and several companies are exploring how to best handle the security implications. This will become a key differentiator for many MTD product offerings over the next two to three years.
• Many security executives and professionals are still behind in dealing with the threats associated with the use of autonomous IoT devices in their enterprise.