Tomorrow's release of iOS 9 is upon us. For enterprise organizations, that means tighter mobile security measures, some nifty productivity features, and a lot more admin control over application management.
Apple has been aggressively courting mobile enterprise customers of late, partnering with Cisco on an iOS "Fast Lane" for businesses, and teaming with enterprise mobility management (EMM) provider MobileIron earlier this summer on OneTouch for iOS, a business app deployment and management service. In iOS 9, Apple looks to complement those partnerships with application and device management, app distribution, and security features enterprise users have long clamored for from previous iterations of the mobile operating system.
First, there are subtle yet extremely useful user interface (UI) updates around productivity. A revamped Notes app now supports bullet points and the ability to embed rich media, and in Mail, users can now mark up documents with annotations, changes, and signatures after the document is attached. There are also new iPad features around multitasking with split views, but the tablet business functionality—particularly in the newly announced iPad Pro—leaves a lot to be desired.
In a climate where businesses are more conscious than ever about data security, iOS 9 moves from four-digit passcodes to six-digit passwords, combined with Touch ID biometrics and two-factor authentication. Within a business network, iOS 9 also prevents data from being shared via AirDrop and includes User Datagram Protocol (UDP) support for setting up a per-app Virtual Private Network (VPN). There's always more you can do to secure sensitive business applications and data, but the UDP and VPN measures especially mark huge strides in Apple's mobile enterprise data security.
Though for large enterprises, the most important updates revolve around EMM. With iOS 9, IT departments now have the autonomy to install business applications onto employee devices without enabling the App Store or requiring an Apple ID. Automated enrollment lets IT hook hundreds or thousands of enterprise devices into an EMM server without manual configuration, and preserve data while converting a user-installed app to an enterprise-managed app.
The folks at MobileIron are particularly excited about all of the EMM capabilities in iOS 9, for obvious reasons, and created this handy infographic of the iOS features and functionality most relevant to enterprise organizations.
Source: pcmag.com
0 comments:
Post a Comment