Mobile Collaboration

Chapter 7, “Collaboration in the Cloud,” examined collaboration tools such as Zoom, Teams, and WebEx. As discussed, the COVID-19 pandemic taught us that using such tools, workers can effectively work and meet from home. Because these tools fully support mobile devices, we are likely to learn that, post pandemic, workers can collaborate and work effectively from anywhere. FIGURE 14-4 shows a Zoom interaction on a mobile device.

Mobile Document Storage and Access

Chapter 6, “Data Storage in the Cloud,” examined the use of cloud-based document stores that allow users to store and easily share documents that reside in the cloud. Most cloud-based storage solutions support mobile devices. In this way, a user can access, edit, and even print such documents using their mobile phones. FIGURE 14-5 illustrates a cloud-based Word document within a mobile device.

Multifactor Authentication

Chapter 5 discussed “Identity as a Service.” Multifactor authentication (MFA) is a security technique that leverages two or more forms of user authentication. Often, to implement multifactor authentication, a user will enter his or her username and password at a website, which in turn, sends a code to the user’s mobile phone that the user must then enter. FIGURE 14-6 shows a MFA code within a mobile device. In the future, more sites will enhance their security through the use of MFA.

Geolocation Solutions

Geolocation is the use of a user’s current latitude and longitude coordinates to enable location-aware processing. Today, cloud-based solutions make extensive use of geolocation for real-time directions, Uber and Lyft ride sharing, identification of nearby restaurants, hotels, and businesses, and more. FIGURE 14-7 shows real-time directions within a mobile device. In the future, we will see geolocation capabilities to expand beyond mobile phones to track packages, pets, cars, and more.

Mobile and BYOD

Often, when employees join a new company, the company will provide the user with a new laptop computer and possibly a new company phone. As you might guess, having to manage two phones is often a hassle, and as such, many businesses let employees use their own phones for business and personal use. Bring your own device or BYOD, is the practice of letting employees use their own phone or laptop for business purposes.

Email is one of the most widely used mobile device applications. Often, businesses consider their email as a business asset (something owned by the business). When the business terminates employment, they will not only want the employee to stop receiving business emails, but they will also often want to erase the employee’s previous emails. To that end, when the business enables the employee to send and receive emails from their phone, the email software will also allow the business to later erase the emails. Normally, the businesses will configure the email software to only erase business emails. However, the software can be configured to clear the entire device! Before you agree to the business’ ability to clear your emails, make sure you understand what they can erase.

Streaming Media Content

As discussed in Chapter 7, “Collaboration in the Cloud,” streaming media is one of the most widely used cloud solutions. Companies such as Hulu, Netflix, and Amazon Prime can stream video content to a wide range of devices, including mobile phones. In fact, today, many users watch more content on their phones than they do on their TVs. FIGURE 14-8 illustrates a streaming video on a mobile device.