It’s 6:30 in the morning and you’re rushing out the door to make it to work on time. You’re driving down the highway, sipping coffee and listening to your favorite morning show. You need to check your work email from your cell phone and all of a sudden, you realize you left it at home. The whole day is ruined. Increasingly, many people are now logging into their company’s secure network on mobile devices, making sensitive information more vulnerable to security threats and hacking. Although the use of smartphones is a focus of large corporations, cybersecurity remains an issue every day. The ways smart phones, laptops and tablets interconnect work life and personal life raise serious security challenges for organizations

Wireless devices are the pulse of the world but they have opened the door for increased security risks. “Not only do such devices become points of access for cybercriminals, but they also may be more easily breached than personal computers”. (Global Focus NA, 2013) Many people do not secure their smartphones or tablets with antivirus software or enable password protection. Consequently, “rogue mobile apps can record the information that users type into a device, such as bank account numbers, and PINs”. (Global Focus NA, 2013) These apps can also capture data stored such as, emails, attachments, text messages and credit card numbers. When a cell phone connects to Wi-Fi, the information transmitted can be intercepted by other devices in the area. Therefore, hackers can easily get your information, including those in foreign countries. Corporate laptops are often more easily secured than smartphones or tablets. Not only does the company IT staff load them with antivirus software, set up passwords and add other precautions, but laptops also remain mostly turned off when people are in transit. Users turn them back on again when they reach their destination. But “with a mobile device, the point is to always be available and accessible to those who need us. So, that exposes the holder of that mobile device to additional security risks.” (Global Focus NA, 2013)

According to former White House cybersecurity adviser Richard Clarke, “employee-owned devices used for work may well represent the newest and largest vulnerability in corporate America now”. (Messmer, 2011) The trend known as “Bring Your Own Device” is a phenomenon amongst professionals and is being scrutinized by many corporations. More and more people are bringing their own devices to work for personal and professional use. Therefore, “workers may unwittingly contaminate the corporate network if one or more of their personal apps contain malicious software.” (Global Focus NA, 2013) Corporations are having a tough time policing them so “mobile devices are directly tied to individuals in ways that personal computers aren’t, because they move with people”, according to Kevin Werbach, Wharton professor of legal studies and business ethics. (Global Focus NA, 2013) It’s more difficult for IT departments to control things that leave the building every day. “Management of employee-owned devices is tricky because it is much more