Q&A: What to consider when choosing an MDM system

*Editor’s Note: This column originally appeared in TechTarget’s SearchNetworking.com 

Question: What are my options for mobile device management? What factors should play a role in my decision?

Rainer Enders, VPN Expert and CTO, Americas, at NCP engineering: 

There are many Mobile Device Management (MDM) systems on the market today. The best choice would be to go with a single-vendor platform for both the management system and the devices.

Here are a few critical points to watch out for:

• Carefully plan the deployment options of the MDM system — in your own network or in the cloud, for example.
• Ensure your operating platforms are fully supported (mobile OS or firmware). You don’t want to end up with systems that are out of the control.
• Make sure the tool is compatible with your application environment, particularly your critical business applications such as email and any database applications.
• Ensure the MDM system supports the most critical features, such as deployment of your most critical applications, remote wipe, blocking of applications or application stores, and data backup.

 

Webinar: What CIOs and CTOs Need to Know About Mobile Device Security

Rainer Enders, CTO, Americas at NCP engineering, recently conducted an Execsense webinar around what CIOs and CTOs need to know about mobile device security. Rainer explains how the replacement of static access networks with mobile access networks has led to a paradigm shift in overall network security. Because mobile device protection complements infrastructure protection, enterprises must safeguard their data within hostile mobile access networks, which are made all the more vulnerable in today’s information age.

Taking us further down this journey of murky data classification and the new obstacles IT leaders face with the proliferation of mobile devices and BYOD, Rainer describes what mobile-centric security strategies CIOs and CTOs should implement to ensure optimal network protection. We hope you’ll tune in to the new Execsense webinar here.

 

Secure Authentication for Apple iOS Devices

As indicated by your feedback in several of our polls, and as highlighted at Interop New York, more and more users are opting to access their company network via various devices. Of all the devices involved in the BYOD movement, Apple iOS products are some of the most popular. In response to this demand, the NCP Secure Enterprise VPN Server now integrates with Apple’s iOS, so IT administrators can perform certificate-based authentication to control network access of iPhones and iPads.

So, how does this work? Apple’s mobile device management (MDM) distributes various certificates to all authorized iOS devicies. When users establish VPN tunnels from their devices, the NCP Secure Enterprise VPN Server uses these certificates to determine what type of device the user is accessing the network with. This enables network administrators to, for example, allow a Mac OS X notebook full access rights, while limiting iOS devices to partial access to the central network. Also, users are unable to decipher or manipulate the certificates, significantly reducing the risk of certifications being duplicated for unauthorized devices. Security is, after all, one of the biggest concerns associated with BYOD.

Ultimately, with its iOS secure authentication, NCP enables IT administrators to use certificates to control assignment rights on these end devices – without interfering with the user-determined username and passwords. Want to view the entire, official announcement? Check it out here.

Readers’ Poll – Android OS

With the launch of NCP’s universal Android IPsec VPN clients this week, we’re curious to know which versions of the OS that our Android-equipped readers are using.  Are you ahead of the curve with Jelly Bean, behind the pack with Éclair, or tastefully in the middle with one of the other deliciously named updates Android has released in recent years? If there are particular features of each that you like –  or dislike –  let us know in the comments.

NCP Releases First Ever Universal IPsec Clients for Android

Remaining at the front of the pack as always, today NCP engineering announced the release of two versions of its IPsec client that supports the Android 4.0 platform, the NCP Secure Android Client and Premium Android Client.

The clients can be downloaded from Google Play and there is the option of a free 10-day trial. Outside of highly-secure access to corporate networks from all Android applications, including terminal-server clients and e-mail clients, the VPN clients also ensure seamless integration with the major enterprise VPN gateways: Cisco, Juniper, WatchGuard, Checkpoint, Microsoft Server 2008 R2 and others.

Other features include:

• Both versions can be installed without rooting the operation system, and boast user-friendly graphical interfaces.

• Premium users can take advantage of an “auto reconnect” feature. For example, VPN connections interrupted by dead zones or changes in the transmission network, automatically reestablish connectivity. The premium software provides comprehensive protection against unauthorized access and supports one-time-passwords (OTP) and PKI certificates.

• When used in conjunction with the NCP Secure Enterprise VPN Server, the NCP Path Finder Technology enables secure VPN connections, even when IPsec connections are blocked via firewalls.

• NCP’s VPN software supports all technical communications and security standards including Internet Key Exchange (IKE) v1 and 2, IP address assignment via local IP address or IKE config mode, pre-shared key or PKCS#12 certificate support, XAUTH, and split and full tunneling network access.

NCP has shown a strong commitment to staying on top of the latest trends in operating systems and mobile capabilities, already offering clients compatible with the Windows 8 Beta as well. Please stay tuned for more exciting updates!

For more information on the Android client, please take a look at the press release, located here.