Mary-Louise Hoffman
A SolarWinds study indicates that some federal information technology professionals have trouble managing security risks due to an increased adoption of mobile devices and shadow applications.
SolarWinds said Tuesday it collaborated with Market Connections to poll 200 federal IT leaders regarding their concerns over mobile technology, shared services and shadow IT, which refers to the practice of implementing enterprise systems without a formal approval from the IT department.
Fifty-eight percent of respondents expect shadow IT utilization to increase within their organizations over the next two years and 71 percent believe the practice raises security issues, according to study findings.
Researchers also found that 35 percent of agency IT leaders said their agencies do not provide mobile device security training.
Most professionals surveyed reported using data encryption, firewall rule audit, wiping, application inventory and authorization and two-step verification tools to secure internal mobile devices.
SolarWinds said more than 50 percent of respondents believe shared IT services programs offer advantages for agency personnel, end users and customers.
Respondents cited cultural resistance to change, lack of executive buy-in and perceived decreased flexibility as factors that can prevent agencies from using shared services.
