Industrial Automation Magazine India

Why Businesses Need Strong Mobile Threat Detection

Published on : Tuesday 11-07-2023

It’s essential to adopt cybersecurity solutions that enable organisations to vet applications, monitor device status, and more, says Zakir Hussain.

In an increasingly connected world, smartphones and mobile devices have become an integral part of our lives. They provide convenience, productivity, and connectivity on the go. There are more than 6.8 billion smartphones in use around the world, with many people relying on them not only for personal use, but also in their professional jobs to access company applications, networks, and files. Unfortunately, with this increased reliance comes increased risk as cybercriminals shift their focus to exploit vulnerabilities on these devices. The growth of cybersecurity threats targeting mobile devices and operating systems such as iOS and Android highlights the growing need for businesses to have strong mobile threat detection (MTD) capabilities.  
 
Three main challenges are driving the growing need for mobile threat detection for businesses: the growth of mobile threats, the need to maintain regulatory compliance, and the growing adoption of Chromebooks.

Growth of mobile security threats
As smartphones and tablets have become ubiquitous, cybercriminals have recognised the potential for exploiting vulnerabilities in these devices. Phishing attacks – where attackers impersonate legitimate entities to deceive users into revealing sensitive information – have become more prevalent on mobile devices. These attacks can take various forms, including fraudulent emails, text messages, or even malicious applications. Fraudsters take advantage of the fact that users are often on-the-go when checking their mobile devices and may not stop to notice the small clues that would indicate it may be a phishing attempt.

Likewise, zero-day attacks, which exploit previously unknown vulnerabilities, are also increasingly targeting mobile devices and operating systems. Attackers exploit vulnerabilities in iOS and Android operating systems to gain unauthorised access to mobile devices, compromising user data and potentially allowing them an entry point for further access to business networks. Bad actors may attempt a Man-in-the-Middle (MiTM) attack to intercept and redirect traffic to a URL that delivers a malware payload or to capture login credentials. The consequences of credential theft are a threat to data security and can result in significant financial losses for individuals or organisations.

Regulatory compliance
Cybercriminals are also increasingly targeting the mobile channel because businesses rely on their employee’s mobile devices as a multifactor authentication tool, sending push notifications or one-time passcodes via SMS when employees need to access company applications. This practice raises important regulatory compliance considerations.

Increased adoption of Chromebooks
In recent years, the adoption of Chromebooks, particularly in the education sector and among task-driven professions has introduced additional security challenges for some businesses. Because Chromebooks can run Android applications, organisations must be prepared to protect against mobile threats targeting the Android OS. Going beyond traditional endpoint security solutions to deploy strong MTD capabilities will enable these organisations to strengthen their cybersecurity resilience.

It’s essential to adopt cybersecurity solution that enables organisations to vet applications, monitor device status, protect against malicious apps and phishing attacks and more, to strengthen their mobile security posture.  

Zakir Hussain is Director, BD Software Distribution Pvt Ltd. BD Software Distribution Pvt Ltd (BD Software) is one of the leading IT security distributor offering industry-leading consumer and enterprise-level solutions in Indian market.