Despite growing threat from malware, fraud and device theft, about 95% of the devices have not been installed with software making them prone to security attack, according to a report by Juniper Research.
According to the report, ‘Mobile Security Strategies: Threats, Solutions & Market Forecasts 2012-2017’, with the increase in security threat the users of these devices will become aware of the issues related to malware threat.
The report forecasts that the demand for mobile security products will increase over the next five years, with 1 in 5 every mobile devices will be protected by third party security software, as both corporate and personal users will recognise the need to protect their devices.
Driven by the rising BYOD trends, the number of protected consumer devices will exceed protected enterprise devices by 2015 while the report forecasts that employee owned smartphones and tablets used in the enterprise will reach almost 350 million by 2014.
Headline grabbing malware attacks on phones and the risk of crimes such as identity theft will motivate the users to adopt mobile security software in the coming years, the report found.
Corporate and personal users will also recognise the need to protect data in case of loss of devices or theft, driving the demand for security applications.
Juniper researchers said that mobile operators and device vendors need to recognise the potential value that can be achieved by integrating key security features such as ‘Track the Device’ or ‘Lock and Wipe’ into their product offerings for customers.
Report author Nitin Bhas said: "Bundling mobile security apps along with other managed services will not only provide incremental revenue for the service providers, but will also help them guarantee better customer satisfaction and churn."
