Cybersecurity
What is App Fatigue and Why is It a Security Issue?
The number of apps and web tools that employees use on a regular basis continues to increase. Most departments use about 40 to 60 different digital tools.
The number of apps and web tools that employees use on a regular basis continues to increase. Most departments use about 40 to 60 different digital tools. Seventy-one percent of employees feel they use so many apps that it makes work more complex. Many of those apps generate various alerts. A ping when someone mentions your name in a Teams channel. A notification popup that an update is available. An alert about errors or security issues.
App fatigue is a very real phenomenon and it is becoming a cybersecurity problem. The more people get overwhelmed by notifications, the more likely they are to ignore them. Digital alerts come in from software apps on your computer, web-based SaaS tools, websites where you have allowed alerts, mobile apps and tools, email banners, text messages, and team communication platforms. Some employees receive the same notification on two different devices, which only adds to the problem.
Besides alert bombardment, every time a new app is introduced it means a new password. Employees are already juggling about 191 passwords and use at least 154 of them during any given month.
How Does App Fatigue Put Companies at Risk?
Employees Begin Ignoring Updates. When digital alerts constantly interrupt your work, it can feel like you are always behind. This leads to ignoring small tasks that seem non-urgent, like installing an app update. Employees overwhelmed with too many alerts tend to click them away, assuming they can handle it later. Ignoring app updates is dangerous because many of those updates include important security patches for discovered vulnerabilities. When they are not installed, the device and its network are at higher risk of a successful cyberattack.
Employees Reuse Passwords. Another security casualty of app fatigue is password security. The more SaaS accounts someone must create, the more likely they are to reuse passwords. It is estimated that passwords are typically reused 64% of the time. Credential compromise is a key driver of cloud data breaches, and the same password used across multiple accounts leaves all of them at risk.
Employees May Turn Off Alerts. There comes a breaking point when one more push notification can push someone over the edge and lead them to turn off all alerts they possibly can across all apps. The problem is that in the mix of alerts are important ones, such as an anti-malware warning about a newly detected threat.
What Is the Answer to App Fatigue?
It is not realistic to go back to a time before all these apps existed. But you can put a strategy in place that puts people in charge of their technology rather than the other way around.
Streamline Your Business Applications. From both a productivity and security standpoint, fewer apps are better. The fewer apps you have, the less risk, and the fewer passwords to remember and notifications to address. Look at the tools you use to identify redundancies. Many companies use two or more apps that can perform the same function. Consider using an umbrella platform like Microsoft 365 or Google Workspace, where users only need a single login to access multiple work tools.
Have Your IT Team Set Up Notifications. It is difficult for users to know which notifications are the most important. Have your IT team configure app notifications for employees to ensure they are not bombarded yet are still receiving the critical ones.
Automate Application Updates. Automating device and software updates is a cybersecurity best practice that removes the process from employees' hands, enhances productivity by eliminating update interruptions, and ensures devices are always running the latest security patches. Managing device updates through a managed services solution improves security and mitigates the risk of a vulnerable app putting your network at risk.
Open a Two-Way Communication About Alerts. Employees may never turn off an alert because they are afraid of getting in trouble. Managers may not even realize that constant app alert interruptions are hurting productivity. Communicate with employees and encourage them to share feedback. Discuss how to use alerts effectively and the best ways to manage them for a better and more productive workday.
Need Help Taming Your Cloud App Environment?
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