Addressing mobile security needs

Your organization's methods to secure your devices partly depends on what device employees are using, where your employees work, who owns the devices and what the device is being used for. Are your employees working from home or from the office? Does your company own the devices, or are you operating on a bring-your-own-device model? Are the devices being shared with multiple employees? Are you using mobile devices, desktops, or both, and what operating system are they running?

When specifically looking at remote workers — which in this context, are employees who perform their jobs outside the corporate network, including those in home offices, remote offices and frontline roles such as retail, field services or manufacturing. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reports on how many U.S. workers above 16 years of age are working remotely. In March 2025, around 23% of workers work some or all their hours remotely. Industries like professional and technical services, information and financial activities see higher than average percentages, all 50% or above.

Remote work is far from uncommon and can present new challenges to cybersecurity. Businesses with remote workers must defend their endpoints wherever they are — and on whatever random, unsecured Wi-Fi network they connect to. Additionally, as Michael Covington, VP of Portfolio Strategy at Jamf, mentioned in a recent webinar, 70% of workers don’t work behind a desk. This means workers require devices that are as mobile as they are, like phones and tablets.

In this blog, we’ll explore some considerations to take into account when defending the enterprise environment, focusing on mobile devices.

Threats to enterprise mobile security

Mobile devices have become essential to business operations — especially when supporting frontline, hybrid and remote workers. Companies are now, more than ever, relying on diverse and more dynamic device use cases in a variety of work environments. This increasingly complex and dynamic environment demands that organizations treat mobile security as a priority and not an optional add-on.

According to the 2024 Verizon Mobile Security Index, 64% of authentications to corporate networks now originate from mobile and non-traditional operating systems. As mobile and IoT devices become embedded into every corner of business operations, the number of endpoints and the potential attack surface continues to grow.

While mobility is no stranger to the workplace, its continuous integration into key workflows is more pronounced than ever before. Today's workplace requires not only exceptional digital experiences, but secure digital experiences.

– Michael Covington, VP of Portfolio Strategy at Jamf

The myth that mobile devices are inherently more secure than desktops or laptops is quickly fading. Verizon reports a significant shift in awareness: 85% of organizations now acknowledge that mobile threats are on the rise. And the data backs up the concern:

• 51% of organizations have experienced mobile app-related security incidents, often due to malware or unpatched vulnerabilities.
• 75% have faced mobile phishing attempts targeting employees.
• 1 in 3 mobile phishing attacks were successful.

These statistics highlight a critical truth: securing mobile endpoints is now essential for protecting the modern workplace. As mobile workflows continue to grow, businesses must invest in proactive mobile threat defense strategies to stay ahead of evolving cyber risks. In the next few sections, we’ll dive into some considerations to take into account.

Choosing mobile devices

What devices are your employees using to get their jobs done? In an ideal world, these devices should be:

• Keeping them productive
• Employees’ preferred device
• Secure by design
• Respectful of user privacy

Apple devices are secure by design with the best out-of-the-box security and privacy features, touting biometric authentication and enhanced encryption. Additionally, even if employees use their own Apple devices at work, their personal information stays private while company data remains protected.

Mobile device management

Mobile device management (MDM) is a foundational part of your security posture. MDM helps your organization manage and secure devices by:

• Keeping devices up to date and compliant
• Reducing security vulnerabilities
• Applying organizational policies to the device
• Providing visibility into your device fleet
• Distributing vetted apps — so users don’t add their own

MDM keeps operating systems and apps up to date with the latest security patches, reducing vulnerabilities in your system. And if a device does fall out of compliance, it can help get the device back into working order.

With features like zero-touch deployment, IT admins can send devices that are ready to enrolled into MDM to wherever employees work — all without ever having to touch the device. And account-driven user enrollment lets users enroll into MDM themselves, even if they own the device. Either way, employees get connected to their work resources quickly and securely.

Secure connections

Speaking of connections — how exactly should employees access company resources? Historically, Virtual Private Networks (VPN) were used. But VPNs can grant users too much access to company networks that host sensitive information.

Zero Trust Network Access (ZTNA) grants access on a per-app basis by using context-aware access policies. Only verified users on compliant devices can connect, keeping your data out of attackers’ hands.

So what defines a “verified user”? The user must:

• Provide the correct credentials
• Pass multifactor authentication
• Behave as expected (location, time of day, other identifiers, etc.)

Threat detection and response

Even if you use devices that are the most secure out of the box, it isn’t enough by itself. You need threat detection capabilities that go beyond the native features. Threat detection and prevention on mobile devices needs to be able to identify and block:

• Malware
• Phishing attacks
• Network attacks
• Malicious websites

By monitoring your devices for suspicious activity, your endpoint protection software can prevent these attacks from compromising your data. When integrated with your MDM solution, you can identify when devices are out of compliance and remediate the issue.

Protecting vulnerable mobile endpoints

With Jamf for Mobile, organizations get all the capabilities needed to unlock mobile's power at work by providing mobility and security teams with visibility and control to secure mobile devices — without disrupting the user experience. With key capabilities to help plan, deploy and scale devices, we enable teams to:

• Extend workflows with secure access to critical applications anywhere employees work
• Provide mobility and security teams with visibility and control to protect devices while preserving native mobile experiences
• Secure both 1:1 device assignments and shared device use cases
• Establish baselines that are compliant with organizational and regulatory frameworks

We help organizations transform the way employees work by transforming what mobile devices can do, with a solution that prioritizes the user experience, integrates IT systems and extends business workflows, transforming mobility at work.