With cyberattacks on the rise businesses of all sizes can benefit from the 3Mobile Protect security solution. “Organisations are trying to provide more flexibility to their employees, but they also need to protect the business and the workforce in an ever-expanding threat landscape,” says Ciara O’Reilly, head of product, propositions and customer value management at Three Ireland. “And that threat is continuing to grow as more and more organisations move to the cloud.”
A point of vulnerability for many businesses is the increased use of smartphones to access company networks and services by remote workers. “Organisations are investing more in cybersecurity but sometimes focus on the on premise networks and the systems in the building and forget the end point and the devices being used by people working remotely,” says O’Reilly.
This is where 3Mobile Protect comes in. The easy to install and use application shields mobile devices from threats like phishing and malware, and allows organisations to filter out non-work apps and content such as social media, gambling and inappropriate websites, as well as set domestic and roaming usage caps.
“It doesn’t access any of the user’s personal data so there are no concerns about sharing personal information,” O’Reilly adds. “It runs unobtrusively in the background and doesn’t drain the battery. The organisation has access to a dashboard which shows them the status of all devices at all times including the number of threats detected and attacks prevented. Each phone is given a security score and if a user hasn’t updated their phone for a while or has done something else to give it a low score it can be automatically prevented from accessing company applications and networks.”
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With nearly 70 mobile phones in use by staff, Circle Voluntary Housing Association needed a robust security solution. “Most of our staff are on the road,” says IT and information governance manager Muriel Koyce. “This, coupled with a switch to fully remote working, means the mobile phone is vital for everyone at the organisation. While we had really good systems in place in the office we didn’t have the right oversight on mobile phones.”
A conversation with the organisation’s Three account manager led it to chose 3Mobile Protect. “It’s easy to use, easy to configure and it’s even easier to install,” says Koyce. “The app itself can be pushed out to users’ phones or it can be installed by users themselves using an SMS activation code.”
The app immediately flagged several phones without the latest software installed. “The latest software offers that extra protection,” says Koyce. “We have noticed a reduction in the amount of smishing and phishing attacks too. And it has saved our workload in terms of analysing threats.”
Rather than sifting through information manually the organisation can view it on dashboard. “It shows how many attacks have been stopped,” says Koyce. “And it’s easy to use and turn apps on or off. It gives you real peace of mind. It’s given us much more than what we originally imagined it would.”
Brendan Higgins, owner and managing director of south Dublin-based Central Pest Control, also values the peace of mind offered by 3Mobile Protect. “As a small business you are genuinely concerned about the next email or text you get. If a virus got in and destroyed your business what price do you put on that? It was a breeze to set up, very quick. I open the app on a daily basis. It will alert you if there are any threats and where they come from. It gives the mobiles a score every day. We try to keep them at 100 per cent. If a threat appears it’s dealt with.”
3Mobile Protect also highlighted an unexpected area of vulnerability. “It showed up virus attacks to the electronic gates at the office,” says Higgins. “You get regular feedback on where the threats are coming from.”
Importantly for a small business, it’s also relatively inexpensive. “It’s a small price to pay. I’d highly recommend it.”
O’Reilly advises businesses interested in the 3Mobile Protect solution to contact their Three account manager or the customer service team. “It’s super simple to install and set up,” she says. “Everything is done remotely. Individual users download the app to their phones, and we send them an activation code by SMS. Some customers are very familiar with technology and security, but we provide advice for those who aren’t and will help them with things like making the best use of the dashboard. Also, some customers will already have mobile device management systems in place. 3Mobile Protect works with these solutions with no conflicts. It’s extremely straightforward and is usually all set up within a day.”