The Data Security Risk for a Remote Tech Company with BYOD Contractors

Workforces today are not what they were 25 years ago. Companies are hiring more contractors, remote workers, freelancers, and offshore workers than ever before, and those numbers are going to continue rising.

We recently spoke to a $100M company that has over 3,000 employees—many of whom fall into these categories. And what laptops do these contractors and remote workers use for work? Their own.

The rise of the gig economy has paved the way for BYOD workforces, wherein workers utilize their personal devices for work, and this remote-first company is experiencing both the enormous benefits and the challenges of this new way of working.

The Security Challenges of a BYOD Workforce

In addition to the usual challenges of BYOD—like addressing end-user privacy concerns and supporting a remote workforce on a range of devices—this case study has another special twist. This next-gen video game tech company is under strict confidentiality requirements, so a data leak would be a huge scandal—and an expensive one. 

But how do you maintain data security when your workers are remote and using their personal devices?

Up until recently, this company has required its contractors to download antivirus on their personal machines as well as install VMWare, where the company uploads its own images. 

But the IT team is unsatisfied with this solution and is searching for a more effective way to secure its remote BYOD contractors.

1. The first concern the IT team has with their current set-up is that it doesn’t protect the drives themselves – there are still serious concerns of screenshot and copy/paste data leaks (remember; scandal and huge costs are at risk here).  
2. Another challenge is GPU support. Since a lot of their workers are 3D artists and designers, they need solutions that enable more GPU-intensive applications. When running on a remote server, these applications tend to present a lot of latency, slowing productivity and increasing user frustration.
3. Lastly, the IT teams expressed concerns about the rising prices of VMWare. The price is becoming more difficult to rationalize, especially with the associated performance and security concerns.

Given these persistent challenges, the IT team has been seeking an alternative solution that:

• Ensures robust data security
  • The solution must protect sensitive data from breaches, leaks, and unauthorized access. This includes protecting the drive itself and preventing data exfiltration through methods like screenshots and copy/paste.
• Supports high performance
  • For roles that require GPU-intensive applications, the solution must support high performance without introducing latency. This would ensure that BYOD contractors, especially those in creative fields, can maintain productivity.
• Maintains end-user privacy
  • A solution that respects and maintains the privacy of end users is crucial. Employees should feel confident that their personal data remains separate and protected from their work data.
• Is user-friendly
  • The solution should be user-friendly and not overly complex to implement and manage. It should integrate smoothly with existing workflows and not hinder the day-to-day operations of the workforce.
• Is cost-effective
  • The solution must be affordable, especially in comparison to the rising prices of VMWare. Cost efficiency is a significant factor for the IT team, ensuring that the company can sustain the solution in the long term.

Thus, this company was intrigued when they heard of Venn’s Blue Border technology, which offers a completely new paradigm for enabling BYOD workforces. 

A Completely New Approach: Venn’s Blue Border

Venn is the first purpose-built patented technology for enabling BYOD workforces. 

With Venn, work lives in a company-controlled Secure Enclave installed on the user’s PC or Mac, where business activity is isolated and protected from any personal use on the same computer. Work applications run locally within the Enclave – visually indicated by the Blue Border – securing company data while ensuring absolute end-user privacy. 

For this company’s IT team, Venn provides an alternative solution that protects the drives themselves within the Secure Enclave, maintaining data security and enabling any local GPU-intensive applications without the latency or rising prices of VMWare. And equally as important – it protects the end-users’ privacy, so everyone can have peace of mind. 

If you want to hear more about Venn, talk to us.