To enable remote work, businesses typically opt to either provision workers with company-owned laptops or allow them to use their personal laptops for work (aka “bring your own device (BYOD)”). In evaluating BYOD vs company-owned laptops, IT managers weigh security, budget, and user satisfaction before finalizing a policy. But it’s important to explore myths vs facts about these two different approaches.
In this post, we’ll cover what you might not know about BYOD vs corporate devices and clear up some common myths, so you can make an informed decision about the best way to securely enable remote work for your organization.
BYOD vs Company-Owned Setups
These are the options for enabling remote work:
- Choose Your Own Device (CYOD): Employees select from a pre-approved device list; their employer purchases, configures, and manages devices.
- Corporate-Owned, Personally Enabled (COPE): The company issues devices for work but allows some personal use on them.
- Corporate-Owned, Business Only (COBO): Devices are strictly for business functions; employees may or may not have a choice of devices.
- BYOD: Employees use their personal devices (PC or Mac) for work. BYOD security technology like VDI, DaaS, and Secure Enclaves allow employees to access business systems remotely.
BYOD vs Company-Owned Devices: Myths and Truths
Here’s what to know about BYOD and corporate devices for remote work:
❌ Myth: BYOD Technology is Frustrating for End Users
This myth was a reality years ago, when the only options for BYOD enablement were VDI and DaaS. Employees and contractors using VDI technology often experience frustrating latency when trying to access business applications and files. But a newer BYOD technology has solved that problem: the Secure Enclave.
✅ Truth: A Secure Enclave Offers the Best UX for BYOD
A Secure Enclave adapts principles of mobile device management for laptops, creating a secure, local work environment on a user’s device. All apps and data run locally, removing the latency challenges prevalent with remotely hosted virtual desktops. Employees also get to use the device and OS that’s most comfortable for them, and they don’t have to keep track of separate laptops for work and personal use.
❌ Myth: Company-Issued Devices Are Easier to Manage
While it’s true that company-issued devices allow for consistent setup and security, it’s not true that they’re “easier” to manage. IT teams often spend an inordinate amount of time configuring, shipping, and deprovisioning laptops. Company-issued devices also make onboarding and offboarding a slower process.
✅ Truth: BYOD Can Reduce IT Admin Time
While VDI decreases the time IT teams spend shipping laptops, standing up the complex back-end infrastructure is still very time-consuming, as are the support tickets for latency. A Secure Enclave solution, on the other hand, dramatically reduces IT admin tasks. Teams can deploy a Secure Enclave via email to the end user and seamlessly define which apps can and can’t run within the Enclave. With all business systems and data protected within the company-controlled Enclave, IT teams can rest assured that business data is secure and invest the regained time on more strategic initiatives.
[Learn about the ROI of a Secure Enclave vs VDI and company-owned devices.]
❌ Myth: Company-Owned Devices Are More Secure
Regardless of how IT teams configure devices, user-based security risks are high. Employees might fail to install critical updates, leaving software vulnerable to malicious exploits. Plus, 90% of employees use their business laptops for personal activities, which greatly increases security risks for employers.
✅ Truth: Secure Enclave Offers Better Data Protection
Secure Enclave technology offers a more robust solution by isolating business data within a protected environment, safeguarding it both in transit and at rest. Even if a user’s personal device is compromised by malware, the Secure Enclave makes sure that business data remains untouched and secure. Additionally, since a Secure Enclave is built to separate both secure work and personal use on the same device, the risk of sensitive data being intermingled with personal data is mitigated.
❌ Myth: BYOD Won’t Work for Compliance-Heavy Industries
Organizations that handle sensitive data, such as financial and healthcare entities, must comply with strict data access, storage rules, and compliance regulations like HIPAA, FINRA, SEC, etc. Business leaders in these industries may assume that BYOD heightens compliance risks, but with the right security solution, BYOD can be just as compliant as company-owned devices.
✅ Truth: BYOD Can Strengthen Compliance
Technology for enabling BYOD can strengthen compliance. For example, Secure Enclave technology is the gold standard in BYOD compliance enforcement.
A Secure Enclave is an isolated, company-managed work environment on a user’s device. All work data and applications are secured within the Enclave, shielded from any activity or threat outside of it. Users can’t download, screenshot, or copy information from inside the Enclave, and IT admins can remotely disable the Enclave and remove it from a user’s device in an instant.
[Read more about Secure Enclave compliance with HIPAA, FINRA, GDPR, and more.]
A Closer Look at Secure Enclave Technology
Venn’s Blue Border™, which utilizes Secure Enclave technology, offers several immediate benefits for businesses:
Attracting Top Talent
Today’s knowledge workers want more than just a good salary; they want to work with their preferred device and operating system. Offering employees the freedom to use their personal laptops for work is an excellent recruiting tactic.
Especially for contractors and offshore workers, who are often remote and may work for multiple companies at a time, using their personal computers is often much more enticing than juggling multiple company-owned devices.
Turn-Key Compliance
Venn helps CISOs sleep better at night, knowing that compliance is built-in. Venn’s Blue Border has turnkey regulatory compliance with industry standards including HIPAA, PCI, SOC, SEC, FINRA and more.
Lower Costs
At a time when the cost of seemingly everything is increasing, companies are looking for ways to lower unnecessary spend. Venn helps enterprise clients get out of the hardware business — no more purchasing, managing, shipping, and deprovisioning company-owned laptops.
Experience the Power of Venn
With Venn, enabling secure remote work is easy. From enterprise-level compliance and security to a seamless experience for end users, Venn is the modern solution for BYOD workforces.
