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IN THE KNOW EN H A NCI NG + ENGAGI NG + C ON N EC T I NG M A RCH 2 013 THIS MON TH 72 EMERGING TECHNOLOGY 73 TECH WATCH 74 TECH UPGRADE A Device in Every Pocket The benefits outweigh the challenges with BYOD on campus. by KAREN SPRING S tudents today are showing up to campus with a lot more than just a suitcase and their bed sheets in tow. Instead, they are fully equipped with laptops, smart phones, iPods and MP3 players, tablet computers, gaming consoles, and even Apple TVs. In addition, technology has enabled students to head to class or off to a quiet study room with a tablet or a smart phone to complete assignments. In years past, colleges asked their incoming students to purchase specific computers to link up to the university network and for access to important information. But that process has become outdated and costly. Students prefer to have options. Today's students prefer to BYOD, as in "bring your own device" to campus in the form of smart phones, tablets, iPods, and other products. It gives them flexibility, convenience, and the ability to use the products of their own choosing. "I call it letting Pandora out of the box," says Doug Louie, the senior director of Product Marketing for Enterprise Mobility Solutions at Smith Micro. "Schools and organizations did not have much of a choice to prevent students and employees from bringing their smart phones and devices in to work or school. People were going to do it regardless.... Colleges have found it is in everyone's best interest to BYOD." Gerard Festa, director of Solutions Marketing at Aruba Networks, says, "Students expect to connect their mobile devices to the campus wireless network and have the same experience as they get at home. To meet these expectations, universities need to be able to allow for self-registration of devices and enable personalized access to services like AirPlay across the campus." Corporate-Level Security BYOD can certainly result in highly critical security issues. Policy management is imperative to any organization that wants to keep its networks safe. A college network could be a haven for malware, computer viruses, and the loss of sensitive data due to the number of individuals who have access to that network with various thirdparty devices. Malicious emails can wreak havoc. A lost smart phone with financial and personal information might end up in the wrong hands and result in identity theft. Another issue that comes into play is bandwidth consumption. Thousands of connected devices might bring a network to a standstill. Does that mean that the sophomore who is streaming the latest Denzel Washington movie off of the Internet will prevent a professor from downloading files for a lecture? Which task takes priority? Sameer Kanagala, Market Development and Solutions, Wireless LAN Division at Motorola Solutions, has found that most college campuses are BYOD-friendly, but with a ratio of 3:1 in terms of devices to students, the security issue can be a daunting one. "A college campus must maintain corporate-level security," Kanagala says. "Both credentials and data have to be kept safe. Security is the main issue here." The correct policies, which can be maintained by the college's IT administrators, will enable specific data to gain priority. Thus, a YouTube video of barking puppies will be considered far less important than a professor's download in a classroom. Policy management sets the standards for the MARCH 2013 / COLLEGE PLANNING & MANAGEMENT 69