The increasing risk associated with mobile technology

This week’s feature is a guest article, penned by two respected US cyber security risk expert, Dr Germaine Walker and Dr Chantel Perry,
Dr. Germaine Walker.Dr. Germaine Walker.
Dr. Germaine Walker.

Society wants to own the latest and greatest technology out there. We all can say or assume that electronic mobile devices are designed to be an assistance to society’s daily life structure. And why not? We already use the technology to pay our bills, surf the internet, and for entertainment. We want our phones to have the best camera features; play the best games with graphics , or plan our lives.

Literature and research in the last decade have presented a trend in mobile technology (cellphones, tablets, and laptops) use . Mobile technology has had such an effect on social life, it has spread over into our work lives as well. Before you know it, the phones will tell us what to do or post.

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Cellphones are part of the mobile technology family. Mobile technology is any information technology that you can use on the go.

Dr. Chantel Perry, eid R4945, USAA employee.Dr. Chantel Perry, eid R4945, USAA employee.
Dr. Chantel Perry, eid R4945, USAA employee.

Let’s focus on cellphones, tablets , and laptops for the most part. We want the technology to be so easy to use, that it will predict what we will do next. If we think about the cell phone, we have come to a point where there are so many apps or features on the most popular cell phones that the average person has no knowledge they exist.

The features are there for the consumer benefit and that is great. However, when there is a lack of knowledge in using these devices, you increase the risk of a security breach. Some common issues for the consumer are the screen lock feature. You have the option of going in your settings and change how long your screen closes after so many minutes of no activity. While this is a good setting to change, this is irrelevant if you don’t have a password to lock the phone. The there is the other view of mobile technology…such as drones! Yes Drones!

Drones are small aircrafts which are controlled from a distance but do not have people aboard them.

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Drones have become increasingly popular over time and have be used to take aerial photos, travel in outer space where humans cannot, carry out airstrikes, and at one point Amazon planned to deliver packages using the devices.

A company by the name of Matternet desires to utilize drones in healthcare to deliver medicine to areas that humans may not be able to reach in a quick amount of time.

Drones can travel above traffic and rugged terrains at lower costs than it would take for a human to travel (http://www.quantumrun.com/article/drones-distribute-medicine-isolated-communities).

There are underdeveloped countries that are currently going through disease epidemics in which large populations cannot receive medication in a timely manner due to their location.

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Patients would be able to order medicine on their mobile device and receive it in a matter of hours rather than days. The amount of time an ill person receives health care could be the difference between life and death. These drones can travel approximately 6 miles in 15 minutes and if carrying about 4.5 pounds would still only cost about 24 cents.

Technology is one of the supporting forces for drone technology since they will be used in conjunction with mobile devices. Mobile technology usage is steadily increasing each year.

In 2014, over 1.6 billion people worldwide owned a mobile device and soon more people owned a mobile device than a desktop computer. Since most phones can be used in any location and can be equipped with applications, drones will be easily accessible for a mass amount of the world’s population (http://www.smartinsights.com/mobile-marketing/mobile-marketing-analytics/mobile-marketing-statistics/). Therefore, technology will be an integral yet advantageous part of drone medicine delivery.

Society wants these options for mobile technology, but society may be a challenging force since many of the underdeveloped societies do not have access to mobile devices and may not be ready for the introduction of new technology.

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There would have to be a strategy in place to introduce people to the technology and show them how to use it properly.

Even when people use the device properly, there is a chance that people will misuse the medicine service and there would be conflict. Sometimes when people are in bad situations, such as a mass epidemic, there tends to be chaotic behavior such as violence and theft.

There could be situations in which people might still patient’s medicine and even the drones

As technology continues to advance, so does the need for information security. Search the internet (one of the best examples of our advancement in technology) for terms. It is amazing to read about in my opinion.

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However, where there is Moore’s law, there is Murphy’s Law.

Murphy’s Law states “If anything can go wrong it will go wrong.” How did Murphy’s Law come about?

Marcus Dunk wrote in ‘Daily Mail’ in 2009, that Edward Aloysius Murphy Jr was a successful American pilot and aerospace test engineer who worked on safety systems for such renowned experimental aircraft as the SR-71 Blackbird and the X-15 rocket plane (which is cool!).

Murphy created the law after one of his assistants attached 16 sensors on an experimental device the wrong way. The point is that awareness in technology is key.

In this regard, we discuss security awareness.

As with any technology, you must make sure that users are aware of safe ways to use new products and services.

Always stay in the know.