Staff ignoring rules on which apps to use in workplace, says survey

Feb 26, 2019 • News • Cyber Security • Software • Software and Apps

Employees are putting their businesses at risk of cyber-attacks by refusing to obey the rules when it comes to the apps they use in the workplace, according to a report from Maintel.

Workers have confessed to using unapproved apps in the office, including Instagram, Facebook Messenger and Snapchat to communicate with colleagues as well as friends and family. For example, four in ten employees (41%) admit to using Instagram for more than two hours each day, despite the app being banned in almost half of UK organisations.

The majority of employees are well aware that certain apps are not approved for workplace use, but this hasn’t stopped them breaking the rules. In fact, the research found that usage is on the rise, with use of WhatsApp, Snapchat and Instagram increasing significantly over the past three years – 30%, 27% and 33% respectively.

Staff told us that apps like WhatsApp offer ease of use (84 per cent), speed of response (44 per cent) and informality (35 per cent) in the workplace. This highlights that businesses need to implement more apps that meet their workers needs. But, while employees may be continuing to break the rules, using these unapproved apps is a danger for many businesses. The risks of using undocumented, unsecure apps should be obvious enough – especially in light of GDPR.

Maintel CTO Rufus Grig said: “If this research tells us one thing, it’s that whilst organisations can go ahead and prohibit the use of as many tools as they like, this will never be enough to actually make this vision a reality. Businesses need to recognise that employees are still using these tools in the knowledge they are unauthorised, and make a conscious effort to understand why. Employers need to ensure the communication needs of a multi-generational workforce are catered for. To do this, it’s clear we need to invest more time into making sure that approved tools offer the best user experience possible, or in those words, offering platforms that are motivating, compelling and easy to use in the workplace”.

You can see the report here.