Use of Personal Mobile Phones at Work: Advice for Employers

Acas has published some very brief guidance on the use of smart phones and other devices at work. More than half of UK consumers have used a smart phone according to latest figures. Mobile technology is creating changes to way we go online and do our work and employers must keep up with the implications for the workplace.

The guidance highlights that some organisations have a ‘bring you own device’ (BYOD) policy. This allows employees to access company resources and data on their personal devices. There are advantages of allowing this for both the employer and employee. Employers save the cost of buying the device themselves and they can portray the organisation as flexible and forward-thinking. Employees have the convenience of using their own devices and some analysts even claim that it boosts morale and engagement.

However, as the guidance points out, it is not without risk where a BYOD policy is badly managed, the most obvious one being the threat to security. Phones can be easily lost – a real danger if it has been used to access or store confidential company information. Employees use their devices for their own ends as well as for work, accessing websites or adding content as they see fit. By doing so they could unintentionally infect their device with malware that could provide a backdoor for hackers into company systems. Also when employees leave a firm, it is not easy to access their personal devices to make sure confidential or sensitive information has been deleted or to be able to check that data has not been improperly used or transferred.

The guidance states that analysts have recommended that well-managed BYOD policies should isolate business use from personal use. It is also suggested that employers should consider making provision for remotely deleting sensitive data from devices belonging to ex-employees or which have gone missing. Employees should also protect their devices with a password.

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