New ESG webinar discusses risk areas for BYOD and guest access

An ESG webinar discusses Cloudpath Enrollment System features that plug security holes inherent for getting users and devices connected to the network.

A while back, Ruckus Networks sponsored a white paper from Enterprise Strategy Group (ESG) titled “Does Your Method for BYOD Onboarding Compromise Network Security?” This thought-leadership piece did a great job of calling attention to the security flaws in the ways organizations typically get BYOD and guest users connected to the network.

ESG webinar

We’d like to share with you a brand new on-demand ESG webinar published under the same title featuring Senior Analyst and Practice Director Bob Laliberte. No registration is required to view the webinar. As much as we like white papers, hearing Bob cover this subject matter in webinar form really brings it to life. You can think of the white paper and webinar as companion pieces that reinforce one another. The webinar builds upon the white paper content to reach new heights of insight. Even if you have read the white paper, the webinar is well worth viewing.

What does the new ESG webinar cover?

As you probably know, ESG is a highly regarded and influential IT industry analyst firm with practice areas that include networking and IT security.  Many IT professionals look to them to provide insights into trends in the world of IT. Those of us on the vendor side also follow them to keep tabs on what’s going on in the broader IT landscape. You can check out some of ESG’s videos on their YouTube channel and follow them on the major social media platforms.

The new ESG webinar contains a little over 34 minutes of great content from Bob Laliberte, placing network access security in the broader context of industry topics like digital transformation and IoT adoption. It argues that the attack surface for potential data compromise is growing and suggests some root causes for that dynamic. Bob goes on to cite several drivers for making IT purchase decisions, referencing ESG research to back up his assertions.

Then things really get going as he delves into the core of the subject matter—how commonly used methods for getting BYOD and guest users connected to the network can leave you vulnerable to data and network compromise. (This is something we at Ruckus have been trying to raise awareness about for some time, so it’s great to have ESG validate that perspective.) Bob covers some questions you should ask yourself in relation to network access security. He also makes specific recommendations about how IT teams can improve security in this area.

The Ruckus take on secure network access

Since this is a vendor-sponsored webinar, you probably expect that Ruckus will have something to say on the subject matter, as well. If so, you are correct. Please note that we don’t claim the lion’s share of the airtime though—less than half of the time that Bob spends presenting. The focus here is on his thought-provoking and educational content.

We do take some time at the end to discuss our take on how to plug the security holes inherent to the default methods for getting users and devices connected to the network. This may be giving too much away about the ESG webinar content, but Cloudpath Enrollment System, our SaaS/software for secure onboarding, has security features that address precisely the issues discussed in the webinar.

Conclusion

We’ll wrap up this blog by inviting you again to watch the new on-demand webinar featuring ESG, and reiterate that you don’t need to provide any contact details to view it. It’s a great resource to learn more about network access security issues and how to address them. It can also be a good place to refer others in your organization, who may influence IT strategy, to help them understand the issues. You can also access the companion white paper, either in the form of a dynamic website or a PDF. After that, feel free to check out other resources on the Cloudpath product page. You can even request a live online demo there when you’re ready for a closer look at the product.