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Loading ...The proliferation of mobile devices and mobile users has had an unexpected consequence: e-mail is going non-corporate. Although they will rarely confess to it, many employees are redirecting work e-mails to private e-mail addresses so that they can pick messages up while on the move, either via webmail or mobile devices.
Why is that so bad? Well, it moves the security boundary for the corporate e-mail firmly outside of the corporate firewall. Hackers have recently had quite a bit of fun with a certain vice presidential candidate’s email (for the full back ground check out Michelle Malkin’s “The story behind the Palin e-mail hacking“. There are many different services out there, and the way that they handle authentication (the usernames and passwords) varies widely. A wily hacker could have access to a mailbox for months if not years before anyone realised.
What to do? The immediate sensible reaction might seem to be a big crack down, but actually it would be more productive to look at employee’s needs and provide mobile e-mail access. Monthly costs are now very low (on a par with line rental or a broadband account). It might also be time to take another look at a corporate webmail solution for laptop-based remote users.
You might not want users stuck in the office, but you don’t want their email running free!
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