MobileIron Helps Companies Manage Mobile Devices, the CTIA Helps Individuals Report Stolen Devices | Hey Tech! | Angela Hey | Mountain View Online |

Local Blogs

Hey Tech!

By Angela Hey

About this blog: I write about technology companies, trends and events in and around Mountain View. Where else can you find startups nurtured by Y-Combinator and  (More)

View all posts from Angela Hey

MobileIron Helps Companies Manage Mobile Devices, the CTIA Helps Individuals Report Stolen Devices

Uploaded: Nov 27, 2013
In April 2012, the Cellular Technology Industry Association (CTIA), the Federal Communications Commission and telephone companies announced that, by the end of November 2013, they would implement a database to track stolen phones. The CTIA has a video on the five stages of losing a smartphone. The organization also provides a website on how to report a stolen phone for major US mobile phone services, as well as an extensive list of apps that can protect Apple phones.

It's easy to find an iPhone using iCloud. A map will show where it is and the phone can chirp until found. If you are an iPhone, iPad or Mac user and haven't set up Find My iPhone in iCloud, it's worth doing. Apple offers an "erase iPhone" feature to clear personal data from the phone and Google offers Android Device Manager to wipe stolen phones.

For companies, Mountain View's MobileIron offers its Anyware software to manage mobile devices. It enables an administrator to push apps and data to mobile phones. If an employee leaves the company or loses his phone, the device can be blocked.


MobileIron recently showed me how Anyware works with Salesforce, sales management software. This freemium (i.e. has both free and paid versions) app is available in AppExchange, Salesforce's online app store. The free version works with Apple devices. The paid version supports Android devices. You pay for additional features (starting at $4/month per device) to lock devices, send messages through the system and monitor usage.

Director of Product Marketing, Kevin Mukai, noted that MobileIron is the only company that tracks, manages and secures mobile devices using Salesforce. Administrators can make a private catalog of apps from Salesforce's AppExchangeand invite users to download them. Apps and relevant corporate content for users can be updated centrally for all users. MobileIron enables phones to distinguish between apps for corporate and personal use.


MobileIron is a 600-person company and over 5000 companies use their products, ranging from 10 person organizations to major multinationals. Customers include Fenwick & West, New York Life, AT&T, Netgear, KLA-Tencor, Wyndham Hotels and Melitta. The company has received almost $100M in venture capital from Foundation Capital, IVP, Norwest Venture Partners, Sequoia Capital and Storm Ventures. MobileIron is hiring both engineering and business personnel, mainly in Mountain View, but also in Hyderabad, India.

Just as we have the Highway Patrol to catch speeders on freeways, maybe we need a special police force to catch stolen items that can be tracked with wireless technology, be it bicycle, pet, phone, tablet or laptop. These losses are small to thinly stretched police forces who have to investigate more serious crimes like murders, but to the deprived user they can be serious.
Community.
What is it worth to you?

Comments

There are no comments yet for this post

Follow this blogger.
Sign up to be notified of new posts by this blogger.

Email:

SUBMIT

Post a comment

Sorry, but further commenting on this topic has been closed.

Stay informed.

Get the day's top headlines from Mountain View Online sent to your inbox in the Express newsletter.

Burning just one "old style" light bulb can cost $150 or more per year
By Sherry Listgarten | 12 comments | 3,212 views

Banning the public from PA City Hall
By Diana Diamond | 27 comments | 2,315 views

Pacifica’s first brewery closes its doors
By The Peninsula Foodist | 0 comments | 2,072 views

Holiday Fun in San Francisco- Take the Walking Tour for An Evening of Sparkle!
By Laura Stec | 8 comments | 1,892 views

Premiere! “I Do I Don’t: How to build a better marriage” – Here, a page/weekday
By Chandrama Anderson | 0 comments | 1,540 views

 

Support local families in need

Your contribution to the Holiday Fund will go directly to nonprofits supporting local families and children in need. Last year, Voice readers and foundations contributed a total of $84,000.

DONATE