Managing mobile wearable devices securely

With the upcoming launch of the Apple Watch, wearables are poised to be the next leap forward in mobile computing. Wearables were heavily represented at Mobile World Congress this week in Barcelona, Spain. HTC announced the Grip, a wearable fitness tracker designed to work in conjunction with Android mobile devices, and LG and Huawei, too, announced smartwatches offering a number of biometric and health tracking options. According to CCS Insight, the wearable market is exploding with shipments forecast to grow from 22 million in 2014 to 135 million in 2018.

Wearables may be an attractive accompaniment to smartphones, but they do hold some potential risk for consumers and manufacturers. Device makers will need to navigate the conflicting regulations dictating how the private information of users can be addressed, an issue that will be compounded when devices start to collect the type of health data currently protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA). As FTC Commissioner Julie Brill pointed out in a recent InsideCounsel interview, “The ways in which health information is flowing now throughout our digital lives are much broader than what was captured in laws adopted a couple of decades ago (such as HIPAA)…. The question is: Are we appropriately protecting all of this health information, including the information generated through these new technologies? Companies need to more attuned to this issue if they are collecting or using health information generated in these new ways.”

Workplace wearables are also attracting attention of airline security and warehouses workers who can use them to access information hands-free. Clearly we are at the beginning of a new age in mobile wearable technology, and many innovations are ahead of us. The Apple Watch will only propel wearables into the mainstream of mobile technology. That’s why now is the time to create a mobile strategy that includes this new wave of devices to ensure your organization and its data remain secure. Contact us with questions today.