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For those unfamiliar, a "jailbroken" iOS device is an iPhone, iPod Touch or iPad that has essentially been "hacked" to run an unofficial operating system that isn't provided or regulated by Apple. Many users do this in order to have complete control over their device. Jailbreaking allows users to install open source software from sources other than the iTunes App Store and also allows them to change settings and other functionality that Apple itself does not provide them with the means to do so. Jailbroken iOS devices also pose a significant threat to your critical enterprise files in a BYOD situation that you need to be aware of.
KeyRaider: What You Need to Know About Malware
One of the reasons why Apple is so strict about the type of software that can be installed on an iOS device has to do with security concerns. Apps that are downloaded through the iTunes App Store go through an incredibly rigorous vetting process to help cut down on malware, backdoor security holes and other issues that could both negatively affect users and destroy Apple's reputation at the same time.
When users install software on a jailbroken device through a third party app store, there is no such vetting process. Case in point: a new type of malware called KeyRaider recently hit the Internet and compromised over 200,000 Apple accounts in an impossibly fast amount of time.
According to cyber security experts, however, only those users with jailbroken devices are actually at risk. If one of your employees is using a jailbroken iPhone on your business network, all of your critical enterprise files are now at risk, too.
Living in a Post KeyRaider World
Even though it is only jailbroken devices that are at risk, KeyRaider is likely to ask some very important questions regarding the security of all iOS users moving forward. It also has some pretty significant implications for the business world and particularly for those groups that allow employees to use their own personal devices in the workplace.
If anything, KeyRaider makes an excellent argument for why security policies need to be put in place in a BYOD situation. More than that, penalties for breaking those policies (like an employee that installed a jailbroken operating system after signing a security policy saying they wouldn't) need to be just as severe as the consequences themselves.
While BYOD undoubtedly has its benefits, malware issues like KeyRaider show that it has its potential downsides, too, particularly when it comes to critical enterprise files. By making sure that security policies are in place, businesses can protect themselves from complaints, lawsuits and massive financial fines and penalties that come with even the smallest of data breaches in the digital world in which we now live.
