Even before 2020, the concept of Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) was already widespread. But once the pandemic set off the remote work trend, BYOD policies became even more widely implemented. While BYOD has certainly allowed for more flexibility, it brings with it a whole new set of challenges. Among these are increased security risks and bandwidth usage. These challenges make it paramount that companies have comprehensive BYOD management strategies in place. And no BYOD strategy is complete without infrastructure monitoring. We’ll soon take a look at 3 ways monitoring can support your BYOD policy, but first, let’s understand the challenges BYOD brings with it.
Possibly the biggest challenge that BYOD brings for IT professionals is security. If users are using their own personal devices, IT teams cannot enforce that they update their phones’ OS or install the latest security patches. And of course, you simply cannot know what is on those personal devices; from malware to apps tracking data, users’ private phones, tablets and laptops are black holes of cybersecurity risks.
To mitigate these risks, IT professionals need to implement comprehensive BYOD management strategies. One part of these strategies involves educating users and defining rules and policies around using their personal devices in the network. Another part of these strategies is using Mobile Device Management (MDM) solutions. Other options include using Network Access Control (NAC) to segment the network to limit access for BYOD devices. And of course, security solutions like Intrusion Detection and Prevention Systems (IDPS) and Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) systems are crucial.
Aside from these, there is one concept that is crucial to any BYOD strategy: infrastructure monitoring.
Infrastructure monitoring with a solution like Paessler PRTG monitoring software gives you an overview of your entire network, helps you understand the impact personal devices are having on your network, and supports the security systems you have in place. Here are 3 ways that monitoring can be a part of your BYOD management strategy.
Adding new devices to a network is going to generate more bandwidth usage. The more connected devices in a network, the more there is a risk that network traffic is going to get congested. So if you have a BYOD policy in place for your infrastructure, you better be keeping track of the bandwidth being used by all those additional devices.
There are several ways to monitor bandwidth in your network. One way is to utilize common IT protocols, like SNMP, flow, and WMI, to measure the volume of data moving between devices in your network. For example, you could use NetFlow to keep track of the packet of data being received and transmitted by a router. Another way is to utilize methodologies like SNMP traps. While there are various options for keeping track of network traffic, your best bet is to find a monitoring solution that offers bandwidth monitoring tools as part of its functionality.
Monitoring bandwidth usage in your network has two main purposes when it comes to BYOD:
Real-time troubleshooting
By constantly monitoring network traffic, you can get notified immediately when bandwidth problems occur. Not only that but having an effective monitoring solution in place can help you drill down to see exactly which devices might be causing the problem. This is particularly helpful when there are dozens of personal connected devices in your network.
Bandwidth usage analysis
Understanding traffic flow in your network will help you identify patterns in bandwidth usage over time. Once you know the maximum bandwidth usage you need to cater for in the network, as well as peak periods when many devices are connected, you can optimize your network. For example: in a school, peak periods would be when all the students need to connect their devices to the network concurrently. Once you understand how much bandwidth is used on average during these times, you can upgrade your network hardware accordingly to cater for the number of connected devices.
Some signs of malicious activity include unusual spikes in network traffic, suspicious login attempts, or inexplicable system crashes – all of which are metrics that can be monitored.
Even the best BYOD management solutions are of no use if they’re down – and so it makes sense that you should include them in your infrastructure monitoring. This ensures that you will be notified immediately in the case of problems, just like any other aspect of your network.
Managing your BYOD strategies needs to include a monitoring solution, otherwise you simply aren't getting the full picture. The biggest benefit that a monitoring solution like PRTG gives you is an overview of everything. Whether it's network devices, IoT sensors, printers or bandwidth usage caused by BYOD, you need to see everything in one place.
Do you have BYOD policies in place? What are some of the headaches you experience with BYOD? Do you have any tips on how monitoring can help a BYOD strategy? Let us know in the comments below!