Today’s business travelers rely on mobile devices for any number of important tasks, from staying connected to the workplace to travel expense management. Despite the sensitive nature of the business information flowing to and from smartphones, tablets and laptops, relatively few organizations have policies that address the potential security issues, according to BusinessTravelNews.com.
A mobile device policy might outline whether employees can use their own smartphones and tablets for business, as well as which travel apps are secure enough to use while on the road. BusinessTravelNews.com reports that, according to a recent survey of 248 corporate travel management professionals, only about 25 percent of companies have mobile travel policies in place.
And North American organizations aren’t exactly leading the way. The survey notes that companies in Africa, Europe and the Middle East are more likely to have travel policies in place that govern mobile technology and devices.
It is essential that companies develop mobile policies to ensure the security of their data, perhaps by providing enterprise-grade travel expense management applications like Chrome River EXPENSE instead of allowing employees to use potentially unsecure consumer apps. Such a policy can also help prevent losses due to internal fraud, like padded expense claims.
Employees who travel on business put up with a great deal of inconvenience, and some may pad their expense reports, feeling that they are entitled to additional compensation. Others may fudge the numbers, figuring they probably forgot to include an expense they could have claimed.
Companies can significantly reduce this temptation by requiring employees to log expenses as they go via mobile travel expense management software like Chrome River MOBILE. By providing greater visibility and automatic alerts for suspicious behaviors, electronic reporting makes it far more difficult to submit falsified expense claims.
In conclusion, developing a mobile travel policy can help companies better protect their sensitive data from external threats and prying eyes. It also provides a framework for implementing tools and guidelines that discourage internal fraud.
We’d like to learn from your experiences with mobile devices and travel. When are mobile policies most effective at reducing risk? What kinds of problems can occur if a company doesn’t have such a policy?
Source: Business Travel News, September 2013
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