Zenprise adds app blacklist and whitelist support to MobileManager

Zenprise is moving to address enterprise concerns over the consumerisation of IT by giving companies the ability to whitelist or blacklist mobile applications, ensuring data security even when employees are using their own device rather than one owned by the company.

The new capabilities are the major feature of MobileManager 6.1, an updated version of the company's mobile management suite which offers control over the device lifecycle, from initial provisioning through to decommissioning.

"More and more employees simply want to use their own smartphone and tablet for work. They bought them and they are starting to bring them in to the office and are asking the IT department to support them," said Zenprise vice president of marketing, Ahmed Datoo.

The problem is that enterprises will have little control over the kind of applications users may be downloading and running on devices they own themselves, leaving them vulnerable to corporate data being stolen by rogue apps.

"You want to protect yourself against any of those applications that may be doing bad things, but you have to balance that against end user freedom," Datoo said.

Zenprise's solution is to offer whitelisting capability for company-owned devices, only allowing users of these to run approved applications, but apply blacklisting to devices owned by employees, giving these users the freedom to run anything except specific applications with known vulnerabilities, for example.

If the user attempts to launch a blacklisted app, the client agent on the device will prevent it from running, Datoo said. MobileManager can also report back to an administrator if a user has violated policy.

Moreover, a new Secure Mobile Gateway component running on the corporate network blocks any device from connecting if it has a blacklisted app installed, preventing malware from probing the network for information or infecting other company systems.

"It's like a customs officer checking that all your paperwork is in order before you can enter the country," explained Datoo.