Strong executive desire to use iPhones led the Department of Sustainability, Environment, Water, Population and Communities to start looking for solutions that would separate government from personal information. Speaking at AusCERT 2013 on the Gold Coast, Department of Sustainability CIO Al Blake told delegates that it has 2500 users based in Canberra, Darwin, Hobart and other locations in Australia. Read our Guide to Using your Android Phone quot;For the last 18 months we have been grappling with the pressure to have modern mobile devices,quot; he said. quot;This was a scary prospect because of government regulations [around data].quot; AusCERT organisation celebrates 20 years AusCERT 2013: What’s it like to be a `Nigerian scam’ victim? AusCERT 2013: Police urge banks to install ATM chip technology To overcome this, the Department is currently trialling a mobile device management (MDM) solution from Good Technology which separates government data from personal information. According to Blake, the use of an encrypted container allows employees to use their preferred device, minimises the ICT support overhead and maintains the strong security boundary required for government information. It is trialling the encrypted container with 350 employees who are using it on their iPhone, iPad, Android and Windows Phone devices. quot;This is enabling bring your own devices without compromising the user device or corporate compliance,quot; he said. For example, users are told that they need to use their home computer for their iTunes account and backup. If the Department of Sustainability finds iTunes accounts installed at work they are deleted. quot;We can reserve the right to wipe the device- although we try not to,quot; Blake said. quot;We also control password complexity and there is only support for corporate apps.quot; No jail breaking, or unlocking, of devices is allowed. Users are also told not to back their personal data up on the department’s network due to the high cost of maintaining data. The benefits for the department have been a reduction in device overheads without comprising security, happy employees and a BYOD user agreement that runs to one page. Good Technology was certified by the Australian government’s Defence Signals Directorate (DSD) to protect iPhones and iPads used by government employees in March 2013. The DSD Cryptographic Evaluation certification allows iOS devices that use Good for Enterprise MDM software to communicate and store classified information. Hamish Barwick travelled to AusCERT 2013 on the Gold Coast as a guest of AusCERT Follow Hamish Barwick on Twitter: @HamishBarwick Follow CIO Australia on Twitter and Like us on Facebook… Twitter: @CIO_Australia, Facebook: CIO Australia, or take part in the CIO conversation on LinkedIn: CIO Australia Related content brandpost Sponsored by Freshworks When your AI chatbots mess up AI ‘hallucinations’ present significant business risks, but new types of guardrails can keep them from doing serious damage By Paul Gillin Dec 08, 2023 4 mins Generative AI brandpost Sponsored by Dell New research: How IT leaders drive business benefits by accelerating device refresh strategies Security leaders have particular concerns that older devices are more vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated cyber attacks. By Laura McEwan Dec 08, 2023 3 mins Infrastructure Management case study Toyota transforms IT service desk with gen AI To help promote insourcing and quality control, Toyota Motor North America is leveraging generative AI for HR and IT service desk requests. By Thor Olavsrud Dec 08, 2023 7 mins Employee Experience Generative AI ICT Partners feature CSM certification: Costs, requirements, and all you need to know The Certified ScrumMaster (CSM) certification sets the standard for establishing Scrum theory, developing practical applications and rules, and leading teams and stakeholders through the development process. By Moira Alexander Dec 08, 2023 8 mins Certifications IT Skills Project Management Podcasts Videos Resources Events SUBSCRIBE TO OUR NEWSLETTER From our editors straight to your inbox Get started by entering your email address below. Please enter a valid email address Subscribe