[FYI - article] How to ensure a lost mobile device won’t cause a data breach

[JaniceFlahiff]

Stumbled on this via the blog Science Roll (http://scienceroll.com/
2012/04/13/news-from-watson-to-google/)
[Science Roll is written by a physician and focuses on Web 2.0]


How to ensure a lost mobile device won’t cause a data breach
http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/03/26/bica0326.htm

Excerpts:
...The first step is picking the right device. Finn said explaining to
the mobile device vendor exactly what you will use the phone for and
what you need to have encrypted will help them better match you to the
appropriate phone and/or security apps.

Encryption is a security feature that uses unique “keys” that can be
unlocked using passcodes, passwords or other means to ensure
information and data are only viewable or accessible to key holders.
Phone calls can be encrypted by scrambling the communication to anyone
outside the two people on the call.

Some devices have encryption for all or some of the data included in
the phones. Others require downloading apps to provide the service.
There are many available apps in each device’s app store that can be
purchased or downloaded. Finn said some of the available apps are
great, and others are not so good. Some can be cumbersome to use or
hard to understand. Reading reviews at the app stores and getting
advice from previous users and employees at the mobile phone companies
will help find the best solutions.

Once you have the appropriate device and necessary encryption or
security apps, the first layer of defense against snoops is a passcode
lock for the device. Though a four-digit passcode isn’t foolproof, it
does offer good protection, especially if it’s set up to lock or
remotely wipe the device after a pre-set limit of failed login
attempts has been reached.

Without a limit, “you can enter a password 3,000 times and it just
keeps letting you try. With four characters, someone’s going to get it
if they want in that badly,” Finn said.

The ability to remote wipe a lost device is also crucial to security,
Finn said. However, users must be aware that a remote wipe would wipe
not only any personal health information on the device but also any
contacts or personal data that were not backed up.

Once a layer of protection has been placed on access to the phone
itself, physicians can take security one step further and add another
layer between the main menu of the phone and access to confidential
files and apps.

Many apps available for smartphones offer automated logins, which
means that when you touch the icon to open the application,....