Perception matters. From first dates to vendor contracts, a positive perception is what gets you in the door.
In the enterprise mobility space, perceptions about security, ease of use, cost, and customer support all factor into a company’s decision to deploy one type of device over another. According to a recent survey by Tech Pro Research, Apple is winning the perception game when it comes to platform security.
Asked to rate their perceptions about the security of different device manufacturers, survey respondents were clear about which devices they viewed as the most secure. 51% of respondents viewed Apple’s smartphone security as very good or excellent, compared to 39% who said the same for BlackBerry, 31% for Microsoft, 30% for Samsung, and 28% for Google.
Irrespective of how good Apple’s security actually is—and in our experience, it’s been very good—many respondents make decisions about enterprise device purchases based on how good they perceive it being. Throw in iOS’s ease of use and ubiquity in the consumer market, and it makes sense that so many enterprises rely on Apple devices to keep things moving every day. Like we said: perception matters.
Of course, that’s not all the report found. Tech Pro Research also found a high level of inconsistency surrounding mobile IT policies in the enterprise. Despite many companies allowing BYOD, 34% of respondents said that the IT department only supports company devices; 12% of respondents said that all their devices are BYOD, with no level of support from IT. What’s more, despite 61% of respondents believing mobile devices are less secure than non-mobile devices, security measures besides ID and passwords were not consistent on mobile devices.
In our view, perception may be important in the decision-making process, but a positive perception about a device’s security absolutely should not preclude your company from implementing its own robust security measures. Even if you think Apple, or Samsung, or Google devices are secure, don’t let that perception lessen your sense of urgency around creating responsible security policies. Robust mobile security policies are important, and that’s true even if a device is already relatively secure from the outset.
Long story short? Perception matters when it comes to device security. Just don’t let that make you complacent about your company’s security procedures.
