Applications built for the everyday consumer were never intended to be used within an enterprise, and there are countless security dangers that companies can encounter if they aren’t aware of the issues that not using encrypted messaging can cause, even if these applications are providing great usability. The data privacy regulations for consumer apps like WhatsApp are not nearly safe enough for enterprise use – when any sort of business is being discussed, a consumer messaging app/WhatsApp alternative is necessary.
Though there are many downfalls with consumer apps for business use, numerous companies still rely on WhatsApp to exchange proprietary company information, including calls and messaging communication. Though these platforms might have features like read receipts that are beneficial for companies, there are secure alternatives that have the same functions.
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Since the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) laws were instated, organisations that take EU customer data that rely on WhatsApp for business GDPR use can be fined for mishandling consumer data. Compliance with data protection GDPR requires companies to uphold certain security standards, including the Right to be Forgotten, Data Portability, Privacy by Design, the Right to Access, and the Transfer of Data. Many consumer applications fall short on all or most of these legally required aspects. When using WhatsApp for business GDPR regulations are most likely broken. But why?
Software that is created with consumers in mind is typically hazardous because security is not normally integrated into these types of applications. Recent events of data breaches from those applications are attesting to this. It’s imperative for GDPR and data protection that they become secure. The frequency of malicious mobile attacks is only expected to increase, and it’s becoming even more problematic to protect mobile devices.
Alarmingly, a high number of security professionals (64%) have stated that they would not be capable of stopping a cyber attack on mobile platforms due to the limitations surrounding mobile devices. The same study found that more than 1/3 of organisations do not sufficiently secure business mobile devices, yet they feel that the cost of data loss is comparable or even more dangerous than laptops and desktops.
Clearly, safeguarding data must be more of a priority, and there are now reliable ways to do so. There’s no getting around it – it’s essential to have a secure WhatsApp alternative for enterprises. Whatsapp for business GDPR issues are rife and must be avoided at all costs.
Secure chat administration for an enterprise is necessary – which isn’t possible when considering the WhatsApp for business GDPR issues. When mobile applications intended for consumer use are implemented for business use, they act as their own shadow IT. This is dangerous even when the employer consents to their use, and the enterprise might not even be aware of how hazardous using third-party software can be. Shadow IT is any kind of information technology tasks that are run separately from the enterprise IT department.
Mobile applications for consumers are often unsecured, but they also make it time-consuming and problematic to figure out which pieces of information have been sent where. Consumer apps seldom have a main tracker that sends information to the company describing which proprietary information was accessed and sent out. This is why there must be WhatsApp alternative for business users – keeping their personal and private information and contacts separate, and business data protection and privacy secure.
The company often does not have any access over which information can be shared and which cannot. For example, there are no parameters in WhatsApp for business GDPR messages dictating which pieces of information are confidential and cannot be shared and which are safe to share. A fully secure, yet user friendly WhatsApp alternative is the answer.
Another serious security flaw that mobile apps have is the separation between which information should be made accessible by IT or the administration and what the developer of the app makes accessible. This is a primary security downfall that underdeveloped consumer applications pose. IT control over every aspect of the mobile application is imperative to circumventing data breaches.
To make matters worse, mobile phones are reliant on the device, mobile network, and apps to stay secure. When consumer applications are used for work, network administrators have virtually zero control over the security of the information shared. Though the device must be secure as well, the applications are the primary risk. The application must be able to separate personal data and private business data.
Clearly, an app is needed that can authorise administration control over communities through an interface that’s secure, user-friendly, and can facilitate professional group messaging.
Lost data has many negative ramifications including decreased revenue, productivity, and reputational damage. Lost income can be significant, but IBM found that the typical amount that companies lost when their data was breached in 2017 was $3.86 million, a surprising increase of 6.4 percent from the previous year.
The total cost of a data loss is contingent on any malicious intent behind the data lost, and how much value the jeopardised information had. This matter has serious complications as 45% of executives have security trepidations. Enterprises need to begin taking their data more seriously and need to stop relying on unsecured data storage options like iCloud, and should seek a safe WhatsApp alternative for enterprises.
Smaller organisations can be even more vulnerable because they often have a lower margin for error. It’s imperative to be more prepared and to back up data entirely, because just short periods of disruption can wreak havoc for a small company.
Applications that have private login areas containing sensitive data must be secured with strong authentication, as well as with state-of-the art encryption which can be dangerous, laborious, and difficult. Users therefore require that greater privacy and security measures be implemented.
A device-wide password that is fully defined and managed by the users themselves is not secure enough because a majority (over 80%) of data breaches occur from cyber-criminals misusing credentials. It is necessary for applications to implement strong authentications mechanisms using strict password policies combined with multi-factor authentication to keep hackers from gaining access. Privacy of consumer data is gained with well-defined policies that are complemented with multi-factor authentication and the chance of a data breach occurring becomes much lower.
Looking for applications that already have off-the-shelf encryption is simple. However, implementing state-of-the art encryption following the up-to-date security standards is not.
RealTyme applications have been built from inception to be equipped with the highest-level of encryption by providing the best trade-off between the usability and security. Even with third party applications that integrate our Software Development Kit (SDK), there is no need for any additional coding because RealTyme SDK already allows for required security for these purposes built in. We make it simple to secure your enterprise application to protect your customer’s sensitive data. This makes RealTyme an incredibly safe, yet still visually appealing and user friendly WhatsApp alternative.
RealTyme is a secure enterprise messaging app and was designed to mitigate each of these risks because it was built with integrated security and incorporates privacy by design. In addition to the necessary security functions, it has limitless communication and productivity benefits including private messaging and secure video conferencing. Any secure messaging application that an enterprise relies on should also give the administration the option to conduct either cloud or on-premise deployments.
