Articles Tagged ‘iphone’

The iPhone can be an excellent tool to incorporate in your company’s IT business plan. Not only does it provide mobile voice, text and email communication solutions, it can also give you access to most of your onsite business data. However, security steps should be taken to ensure your data is protected at all times, whether the phone is in your pocket during a board meeting or on the counter beside you at your favorite watering hole. As such, All Covered has identified ten important security steps to ensure that your business, data, and IT network are protected at all times:

1. Enable auto-lock- when your iPhone has been inactive for more than a minute, the phone will automatically lock up and turn off the monitor. A previously set 4-digit password will unlock it. This feature will protect your phone and data from being accessed by unauthorized users.

2. Adopt safe Wi-Fi habits- make sure that you are connecting to a trusted network to avoid system attacks from another computer.

3. Use corporate web mail- whenever possible, email should be securely stored on your corporation’s physical email server and accessed through a webmail interface.

4. Use Exchange ActiveSync- if you need to travel out of cellular reception range, download pertinent emails to your phone through Exchange ActiveSync.

5. Surf the web with Safari- this user-friendly, built-in web browsing application can be set to automatically update itself every time you sync.

6. Set device usage restrictions- enable device usage restrictions to ensure that your iPhone complies with your business information security policies.

7. Use “Find My Phone” and “Remote Wipe”- if you lose your phone, you can log into Apple’s secure website and locate it through its GPS homing beacon. If your phone is unrecoverable, you can “remote wipe” it and ensure that all data has been permanently deleted.

8. Activate encryption- prevent accidental exposure of data stored on your iPhone with the included encryption app.

9. Update regularly- keep your iPhone patched and updated to ensure that it is always protected against the newest malware threats.

10. Don’t hack your phone- the technical term for self-initiated hacking is “jailbreaking” and is typically done when you want to install an app that isn’t approved by Apple. Altering the iPhone’s security software can create security breaches that may expose your company’s data.

The iPhone is an excellent IT tool for small business users. Not only does it provide immediate communication capabilities through voice, email and text, it also gives you web browsing capabilities and access to data on your corporate servers. Of course, with mobile IT solutions, security is always a concern, but by following the ten steps above and working with technology experts, you can reduce the risks of security threats to your iPhone, corporate IT network, and data. To learn more about how to securely use an iPhone as part of your comprehensive corporate IT plan, please contact All Covered.

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New iPhone apps can expand your mobile office. With the latest version of the iPhone operating system, you can now download third party productivity applications to your iPhone and enhance your productivity, even when you’re out of the office. With an iPhone, several productivity applications, and a secure, well supported IT network back at the office, you can be productive anywhere at any time.

Recently, Apple gave third-party software companies permission to write apps for the iPhone. Opening up code to software companies has exponentially expanded the software programs available for the iPhone, making it an ideal smart phone for business use. These new iPhone applications can work with your business and allow you take your office with you, regardless of where you go… as long as you are within range of a cell tower.

Some of the best business apps available are:

• CTI Mobility-. integrates your iPhone into the corporate phone system and gives you access to all the phone features that you use at the office. The caveat with this app—CTI Mobility currently works only with an XPhone VoIP solution, but other vendors have similar applications under development.

• ACTPrinter- treats your documents like “print jobs” but sends them to your phone instead of a printer. This app saves you the hassle of having to email documents to yourself as attachments.

• RDM+ – gives you remote access to your Windows or Mac platform computer back at the office and allows you to use any program you have on that computer.

• Citrix Receiver- gives you access to your Citrix applications on your iPhone. With this app, you can open documents, run applications, and join webinars.

• SQLTouch- lets you remotely access and maintain you’re MySQL databases.

• Salesforce Mobile Lite- gives you instant access to your Salesforce.com data, regardless of your location.

• IDcrm- gives you access to your Microsoft CRM data and also keeps an offline copy. This app is great for sales people.

Integrated with a properly secured, patched, updated, and consistently maintained IT network at your physical office, the apps, coupled with your iPhone, can make your mobile phone into a mobile office. In addition to the above mentioned iPhone apps, there are also hundreds of other productivity apps available. To learn more about how to integrate your iPhone with your business technology tools, please contact All Covered.

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Sure, the iPhone has got to be one of the most awesome personal tech gadgets ever invented, but “experts” have always argued against using it as a business tool. Fortunately, that is no longer the case. Apple has updated both the iPhone and its operating system, making the 3GS perfect for business use.

The Phone

The iPhone 3GS is the newest model of phone created by Apple. While the phone looks and feels similar to earlier models, the 3GS has been reconstructed to offer more business friendly features such as:

• Faster processor chip – allows for quicker launch of business applications.
• Enhanced GPS receiver – provides better driving directions for when users are out of office.
• Improved microphone and speaker system – make conference calls easier.
• 3G network – for quicker data exchange decreases the time it takes to send documents back and forth.

The Operating System

Apple has upgraded the operating system. The program looks almost identical to earlier operating systems, but has more built in applications and features than earlier versions. Two new features include:

• Application alerts – will notify you through text messages whenever you have a message from an email or networking account, even though the application is not running.
• 3rd party hardware and application support – allows users to connect specific, non-Apple manufactured peripheral devices to the phone.

Integration

iPhone applications work together and provide enhanced functionality by linking programs such as Safari, Maps, and SMS with contact lists, email, and other applications. The 3GS iPhone is also compatible with many PC programs. Most importantly, it is compatible with Microsoft Exchange, which is the preferred office communication program used by most businesses.

New features

• Email forwarding – occurs automatically when your messages are on Microsoft Exchange Server 2003 or 2007.
• HTML optimization – makes it easier to view web content in either portrait or landscape mode.
• Advanced search functions – make it easy to find messages on the server or your phone.
• Multi-format compatibility – allows users to view and manipulate documents in different formats such as MS Word, MS Excel, PDF, and JPEG.
• Automatic calendar updates – occur whenever calendar changes are made.
• Up-to-date attendance lists – help organizers plan meetings.
• Automatic contact syncing – can be scheduled between the iPhone and Microsoft Exchange server.

Make the iPhone work for your business.

Apple has put a lot of consideration into creating a phone that meets the needs of businesses. The new hardware, updated operating system, and Microsoft Exchange Server compatibility of the iPhone 3GS make it well suited for business use. To learn how to take advantage of the new iPhone and incorporate it into your existing business technology platform, please contact All Covered.

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