Is any enterprise safe from mobile security threats and attacks?

In today's hyperconnected enterprise, hackers are continuing to target and infiltrate mobile devices. As a result, Zimperium's latest report suggests that no enterprise is immune to mobile security threats and attacks.

Mobile security threats and attacks are on the rise

In a typical organisation, 60% of endpoints containing or accessing enterprise data are mobile. Despite their frequency, the vast majority of these endpoints do not have security solutions that provide protection and visibility.

As attackers become more inventive and determined, this distinct lack of mobile security is catalysing the rise of mobile threats and attacks. Indeed, Zimperium's data from over 45 million endpoints around the world qualifies this.

Overall, mobile OS vendors created patches for 440 security vulnerabilities and 27% of enterprise mobile endpoints remained vulnerable to device threats. The majority of malicious profiles (68%) were also "high risk" and could easily lead to data exfiltration or full compromise.

Meanwhile, 32% of enterprise mobile endpoints encountered risky networks, and 7% were particularly vulnerable to network attacks. With this in mind, it is evident that the vast majority of organisations are likely to encounter mobile security threats.

The problem with mobile apps

In a survey of Enterprise Mobility Exchange's audience, 72% of respondents said that their company uses over 100 corporate-owned mobile devices. However, over 44% of disclosed that data leakage was their organisation's greatest mobile security threat.

“Mobile apps are often the cause of unintentional data leakage because the majority of mobile users don’t check the permissions they are granting,” Dr. Rebecca Wynn, Head of Information Security for Matrix Medical Network commented. Indeed, this is particularly true for mobile phones actively connected to IoT through a corporate office network.

In order to address these enterprise security issues, organisations must now consider implementing a robust security framework. As no enterprise is safe, the solution should increase visibility, easily detect threats, and ultimately reduce the risk of attack.

How can enterprises ensure cyber resilience? Listen to our podcast with top security expert Rebecca Wynn and the first female White House CIO Theresa Payton to find out