Safety First: Securing Your Mobile Office
If you transmit business documents from your car, you should follow these tried-and-true safety precautions.
By Bob Violino
Posted Jan. 15, 2008, at 1 p.m.
If you're a business professional who sends and receives documents and information via mobile devices in your car, you must make sure these transmissions are secure. Here's some advice for safely transmitting confidential business information while in your mobile office — and for securing the computers and other electronic devices you use in the car.
Connect securely. When you're sending or receiving documents or accessing corporate networks from your car, it's best to use a secure network. One way to bolster security is to use a client firewall, which protects against intrusion by hackers and other attackers while the device is connected to the public Internet. Software-based client firewalls cost anywhere from less than $50 to nearly $500.
Another option is to use a virtual private network (VPN) to access your company's network and systems. There are a number of easy-to-configure VPN client products available for notebook computers, says Craig Mathias, a principal at research firm Farpoint Group in Ashland, Mass.
For other devices, such as smart phones and personal digital assistants (PDAs), it's not as simple, he adds. Using a VPN to secure transmissions from these devices usually involves some integration and configuration work.
Encrypt the data. Encryption is the translation of plain text into an unreadable secret code, or ciphertext. To read an encrypted file, you need access to a key or password that lets you decrypt the data, converting it back into plain text.
Of course, not all data needs to be encrypted. But any sensitive data that's stored on a mobile device or transmitted over a network should be encrypted, according to Mathias. "If it's not, and someone breaks into your network, that's a serious problem," he says. With encryption, even if someone is able to gain access to your files, that person won't be able to read the information.
Safeguard data storage devices. Portable USB drives, flash memory cards and other portable memory products, which range in price from less than $20 up to more than $1,000, have become very popular. Unfortunately, they are also very easy to steal. So, if you use these memory systems to store confidential information, you should encrypt the data to prevent unauthorized use. In any case, it's best not to leave these storage devices unattended in your vehicle.
Protect against malware attacks. Viruses, worms, spyware and other malware are common problems, and mobile devices are vulnerable to these types of attacks and the loss of data that can result. To help protect your laptop, you should consider using antivirus software and client firewalls. Many antivirus software products cost less than $100. And it's a good practice to log out of all applications and close your browser windows when you're not using your portable computer or other mobile device.
Secure the equipment. It's generally not a good idea to leave laptops, PDAs, tablet PCs and other mobile devices in the car unattended because of the possibility that the equipment — or the vehicle itself — could be stolen. If an electronic device must be left in your car, you should use physical safeguards such as car alarms, motion sensors and glass-break sensors to help deter theft.
Common sense applies here, as well. As with anything valuable, keep mobile computing devices hidden. "Generally a thief doesn't break into a car to steal a laptop unless the laptop is in plain sight," Mathias says. "So don't leave it out." Some vehicles come with lockable storage compartments, or you can have a special lockable storage compartment installed in the trunk. "But that doesn't do any good if the car is stolen," he points out. Lockable storage units range in price from under a hundred dollars to several hundred dollars.
You can also choose from a variety of locking mechanisms that help prevent the theft of laptop computers. For example, The Tufnut Works offers several security cable products, all listed at under $30, which the company says can be attached to micro security slots built into most new computing equipment.
As another safety precaution, you should have access controls — passwords, fingerprint identification systems and other authentication mechanisms — on the device so that, if it's stolen, a thief won't be able to access the sensitive information it contains. Some newer mobile devices combine a fingerprint reader or smart card with a built-in Trusted Platform Module (TPM) chip to authenticate that the user is authorized to access that device.
Having the right security tools in place and taking correct measures can help you protect the mobile computing devices in your mobile office. More important, using resources such as secure networks and encryption can protect the valuable information these devices hold.
Bio: Bob Violino is a freelance writer who has covered a variety of business and technology issues for more than 20 years.
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The views and opinions expressed in this article are solely those of the author and not necessarily those of Progressive Casualty Insurance Company or its affiliates.
