In today’s rapidly evolving digital landscape, safeguarding data and ensuring security have become paramount concerns for businesses and organizations across the globe. To address these challenges, companies are turning to rugged devices from Zebra Technologies and adopting Single Sign-On (SSO) solutions. In this blog, we’ll delve into the world of rugged devices and explore the legal implications of SSO, all while emphasizing the importance of data protection and compliance considerations.
The Role of Rugged Devices in Data Security
Rugged devices from Zebra Technologies are specially designed to withstand the harshest working conditions. Whether you’re operating in a manufacturing facility, a warehouse, or out in the field, these devices are built to endure the challenges of these environments. But, their significance doesn’t end at durability – they are also instrumental in safeguarding sensitive data.
Rugged Device Lifecycle Management
The lifecycle management of rugged devices plays a pivotal role in data security. Proper management includes device provisioning, monitoring, maintenance, and decommissioning. This ensures that devices are always up to date with the latest security patches and that sensitive information remains protected at all times.
Single Sign-On (SSO) Security
Single Sign-On is a powerful tool for simplifying access to multiple systems. It allows users to log in just once and gain access to various applications and resources. However, the legal implications of SSO are multifaceted, involving privacy, security, and compliance considerations. Check out our SSO guide here!
The Legal Implications of SSO: Privacy and Security
Privacy Concerns: When implementing SSO, user identities and personal information are stored in a centralized system. This raises privacy concerns, especially in light of data protection regulations like GDPR (General Data Protection Regulation). It is crucial to obtain clear consent from users and adhere to data protection laws.
Security Risks: SSO can be a single point of failure. If a breach occurs within the SSO system, it can potentially compromise access to all connected applications. Robust security measures, such as multi-factor authentication and encryption, are imperative to mitigate these risks.
Data Protection Requirements
Data protection is non-negotiable in today’s regulatory landscape. Ensuring data integrity, confidentiality, and availability is a shared responsibility between rugged devices and SSO solutions.
Encryption: Data transmitted between rugged devices and SSO systems should be encrypted to prevent interception or tampering.
Access Control: Implement strict access controls to limit who can access sensitive data through SSO. Only authorized personnel should have access to critical information.
Data Backup and Recovery: Regularly back up data on rugged devices and within the SSO system to ensure data availability even in case of system failures.
Compliance Considerations
Compliance with relevant regulations and standards is essential for protecting data and avoiding legal complications.
HIPAA (Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act): If your organization deals with healthcare data, HIPAA regulations come into play. Both rugged devices and SSO systems must adhere to these strict requirements.
PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Data Security Standard): For businesses handling payment card information, compliance with PCI DSS is mandatory. Data security on rugged devices and SSO systems must meet these standards.
GDPR: If you operate within the European Union or handle EU citizen data, GDPR is a critical consideration. SSO systems must support user consent management and data portability.
Securing Enterprise Mobility: Protecting Against Lost and Stolen Devices in a Tech-Efficiency Era
Rugged devices from Zebra Technologies, Honeywell and Samsung are closing the gap in performance to their consumer counterparts, which is allowing enterprises to gain operational efficiencies and provide better customer experiences. However, with the continued adoption and replacement of legacy mobile devices, the security threat that lost devices create should not be ignored.
A recent study from Kesington reveals 4.5% of company-issued mobile devices are lost or stolen every year. To put that in perspective, some of your favorite brands managing over 100k devices could be losing nearly 5k devices each year if the organization is not properly protected. IT systems are vulnerable to threats if they don’t facilitate a comprehensive security strategy that includes protocols for lost or stolen devices.
Below are 3 critical impacts from a lost or stolen device that all organizations with shared devices should prepare against:
1. Exposure of Company Data
Data should be encrypted at rest and encrypted in motion. Period. Having a device within your 4 walls or only on your network is not enough protection. Data encryption at rest prevents the visibility of business-critical information in the event of its unauthorized access or theft. Many applications, especially on cellular devices used in the field, will need to collect, store and transmit data once a connection is available. That’s why robust tools like Splunk help clients process and index data accordingly. Is your data currently protected?
Data encryption in motion has become very commonplace. All the major cloud providers by default support HTTPS connections to ensure that consumers are securely accessing data. However, many enterprises are still hosting APIs on-premise on self-managed infrastructure. Are all connections over HTTPS for your organization?
Questions to consider:
- Are all data connections for the organization over a secure protocol? e.g. HTTP
- When is the last time the organization has conducted an audit of how, where, and what type of data is stored on device?
- If a data breach did occur, how nervous would the organization be?
2. Financial Impact
Lost or stolen devices can also be a financial drain on an organization. Replacing a lost rugged device is not cheap. Many of the rugged devices from Honeywell and Zebra Technologies have a list price north of $1,000 per device. Gartner also estimates that the cost of an unrecovered mobile phone is at least $2,500 per device. These costs are based on the value of the data on the device – the loss of intellectual property and the impact of potentially compromised proprietary data.
When you consider the cost implications of employee downtime, the financial impact rises even further. Lastly, device loss drains IT resources for large organizations, as they would typically have to outsource the break/fix support functions to resellers like Stratix. These additional costs can be saved with the right solutions in place.
Questions to consider:
- What is the ROI for reducing lost and stolen devices by half the organization?
- Does your organization have the correct tools to support lost or stolen device scenarios?
3. Network Vulnerabilities
Back to my earlier point that data must also be encrypted in motion. Why? Not encrypting data in motion gives a bad actor the opportunity to reverse engineer how data is transmitted to APIs and possibly see how devices are connected to your network or access points.
Many software developers use reverse engineering to improve their own code or to improve interoperability between programs. However, a bad actor looking to gain business intelligence or inject malware into a system could begin the reverse engineering of an organization’s infrastructure with a lost or stolen device.
A lost or stolen device can become the key to your network if left unprotected. In December of last year, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan had to inform nearly 15,000 members of its Medicare Advantage healthcare plan that their personal data was at risk due to the theft of a device containing their data.
Questions to consider:
- If a rogue device gained access to the network, would that intrusion be detected?
- How often is the network’s firm and access updated?
Enterprise mobility is at the core of what we do at BlueFletch. Typically when organizations bring us in for mobility transformation engagements, preventing lost or stolen devices are not at the top of the priority list. BlueFletch Enterprise has a robust device tracker to locate missing devices. Having the correct processes, procedures, and solutions in place are key to protecting IT systems and your mobile investment.
Final Thoughts
In conclusion, safeguarding data and security is a multifaceted task that requires a combination of rugged devices and Single Sign-On solutions. The legal implications of SSO, including privacy, security, and compliance considerations, must be carefully managed to ensure data protection. By adopting a comprehensive approach that encompasses these elements, organizations can effectively safeguard their data and meet the evolving challenges of the digital age.
