MaaS360, the New Standard in IT Security

MaaS360, the New Standard in IT Security

     Effective communication and informational accessibility are integral to any modern business. But, maintaining an open atmosphere while keeping sensitive data safe can be a difficult balancing act. Wide varieties of potential hazards, including unsecured Wi-Fi, malware, misplaced devices, cyber-attacks, etc., can result in catastrophic losses. According to the Ponemon Institute, the average cost of a data breach in 2016 was $4 million USD. While issuing company devices under traditional MDM (mobile device management) policies was an effective solution in the past, these measures simply can’t keep up with evolving risks. MaaS360 is the answer to this problem. With this solution, data security is protected by more than firewalls. Even when a company’s network is routinely accessed through BYOD avenues, remote deletion capabilities eliminate the potential for information to be lost if the wrong person accesses a missing laptop, mobile, etc. IBM reports that 49% of information workers use at least three devices in their work. So, having encryption measures in place safeguarding these vulnerable gadgets is pivotal, particularly as 54% of IT organizations are expected to utilize some form of UEM (unified endpoint management) solution by 2020. MaaS360’s iron-sided approach is utilized by thousands of organizations, including the United States Air Force. Easy maintenance, automatic updates, and large margin potentials make MaaS360 an attractive bundling and upselling option.

     Regardless of whether a device or platform is controlled by an application programming interface (API) set, a human agent, or some combination of the two, even complicated business environments immediately becomes more easily understandable through MaaS360 with Watson’s reporting and analytical visuals. All the gathered information is accessible through a single console. The artificial intelligence incorporated in this process is highlighted in three specific capacities: Advisor, Mobil Security Index and Mobile Metrics.

     1) MaaS360 Advisor

     With Watson, MaaS360 Advisor is a powerful cognitive engine that provides contextual information based on industry best practices as well as relevant alerts on emerging threats. This actionable intelligence is sourced from both structured and unstructured data, and is customized based on your organization’s industry, its size and its mobile environment, including the type of devices, platforms, and applications used across the organization. The Advisor leverages feedback mechanisms, learning models and automation to enhance productivity, increase IT efficiency and reduce risk exposure over time. It also provides recommendations to facilitate end-user notification and education, maximizing the value of the insights to the organization. 

     2) MaaS360 Mobile Security Index

     The MaaS360 Mobile Security Index is the industry’s first publicly available mobile security scorecard. And because it is available at no cost to customers and non-customers alike, it will offer the first view organizations have into MaaS360 insights and analytics. This scoring index, which takes industry and geography into account, is designed to provide administrators with a mobile security rating for their organization based on current industry configuration data and best practices. It then provides a benchmark as a point of comparison against other similar organizations based on criteria such as industry, region or size. These comparisons are based on massive amounts of data from existing MaaS360 implementations. The Mobile Security Index also provides specific recommendations and best practices for improving the organization’s overall security posture. The end goal is to foster mobile security best practices across companies and industries worldwide.

     3) MaaS360 Mobile Metrics

     MaaS360 Mobile Metrics leverages the aggregated data of more than 12,000 MaaS360 customer implementations worldwide to provide the industry’s first cloud-sourced mobile benchmarking data. This data, which reflects a wide range of organization types and their mobile implementations, allows customers to compare their security configurations and usage data with peers across similar industries, sizes and other criteria. Mobile Metrics provides a clearer view into mobile environments, enables more informed decision-making and gives organizations a larger context for evaluating their security policies. For example, customers can compare their password requirements with those of other organizations in their industry, the number of applications they’ve blacklisted, or the number of devices on a given platform. With forecasts and predictive models, Mobile Metrics can also help companies predict adoption rates of new mobile applications based on the experiences of similar organizations or identify other potential opportunities to improve user productivity.

     IBM MaaS360 with Watson’s cognitive unified endpoint management combines device application and content management with strong security through one platform, allowing customers to enhance user productivity and maximize security without compromising the user experience. IBM feeds data aggregated from implementations worldwide back into MaaS360 to continue the cycle of providing contextual and meaningful intelligence. It’s a self-improving, active solution tailored to keep business information safe.