Dimension Data: Mobile Workspaces Are Not Ready for the Cyber Threats of Tomorrow

Dimension Data, the USD7.5 billion global ICT solutions and services provider, today published a ¹white paper that examines the need for organisations to transform in order to allow employees to work in more mobile workspaces. In fact, enterprises that fail to offer employees a flexible, autonomous, and creative work environment are at risk of not attracting and retaining next-generation talent. However, most workspaces are not ready for the cyber threats of tomorrow.

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Called Securing Workspaces for Tomorrow , the white paper explores the topic of how employees across the globe are already demanding a more mobile workplace, with the flexibility to work from anywhere, any time, on any device, in order to become more productive and achieve work-life balance.

“But,” warns Matthew Gyde, Dimension Data Group Executive – Security, “because mobile users access the Internet on the go, they’re more vulnerable to attacks as they may not have the same level of security as within the office perimeter.”

Tony Walt, Dimension Data Group Executive – End-user Computing says, “Mobility is not just a preference, but a necessity which will inadvertently introduce complexity, as it relates to maintaining the integrity of the ‘secured workspace for tomorrow’.”

As more enterprises aspire to create future workspaces and harness the benefits of a mobile workforce that leverage cloud platforms, there’s a greater need to implement appropriate measures to secure data, infrastructures, applications, and users wherever they may reside. The devices, environment, applications, emerging technologies all connect to the Internet, potentially opening up avenues for cyber criminals to exploit the vulnerabilities of the new workspace.

“While the mobile endpoint is a potential game changer for businesses, it exposes mobile workers to security risks and vulnerabilities, as they’re not protected by enterprise-grade security,” explains Gyde.

Some highlights in the Securing Workspaces for Tomorrow white paper include:

• Smart offices: the Internet of Things brings the Internet of Threats: The IoT-enabled workspaces for the future deliver a degree of control and customisation that was not achievable in the past. However, these smart devices and their hubs could be more susceptible to cyber attacks, as they’re typically designed with only basic security features.
• Cyberattacks are mostly undetected: they’re often hiding in encrypted HTTPS traffic, or in legitimate files such as word and PDF
• End users are identified as the weakest link and an internal threat: 54% of security professionals worldwide view phishing / social engineering as one of the two most common threat techniques
• Cyber criminals could target Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) platforms: if data in transmission to the cloud is intercepted or residing in the cloud without proper encryption, it becomes an instant gold mine waiting for its discoverers
• Blocking threats through context-aware security analytics: Context-Aware Security Analytics can be used to quickly detect a broad range of advanced attacks such as volumetric DDoS, zero-day malware, and insider threats. Along with continuous lateral monitoring across enterprise networks with user, device and application awareness, the solution accelerates incident response, improves forensic investigations and reduces enterprise risk

Click here to download the Securing Workspaces for Tomorrow white paper.

¹ Dimension Data commissioned Frost and Sullivan to research and compile the Securing Workspaces for Tomorrow white paper

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Contact information

Dimension Data Holdings plc
Hilary King, mobile: +27 (0) 82 414 9623
Global PR Manager
Email: hilary.king@dimensiondata.com