Google Oct. 28 added enterprise management and sync support
for Google Apps on its Android 2.2 mobile platform, which will prove useful for
IT managers as more Android smartphones are used for business.
Android devices, such as the entire Droid line from
Verizon Wireless, already sport native Google Apps such as Gmail, Google Talk and Google Calendar apps, with mobile access to
Google Docs.
Running in handsets such as the Motorola Droid, Droid X
and Droid 2, Android 2.2 is the
first version of the open-source OS with extensive enterprise support.
The build includes policy management APIs that enable
remote wipe, and features to manage Microsoft Exchange on smartphones. However,
until now, Google Apps had not been tuned to support such data security
features.
Google said that IT administrators will now be able to: remotely wipe all data from
lost or stolen mobile devices; lock idle devices after a period of inactivity;
require a device password on each phone; set minimum lengths to boost password
security; and require alphanumeric passwords.
Moreover, the administrator can shield corporate information
from employees who leave a company.
This is a big deal. Good Technology has
found in its installations that many employees are using their own Android or
iPhone handsets--that is, not corporate-issue--for work communications.
Google noted that these policies can be enforced through a
Web browser on devices that have installed the Google Apps Device Policy
application, which will be available from Android Market in the next few days.
The app will be available free to all Google Apps Premier
and Education Edition customers, accessible from the Mobile tab under Service
Settings in the Google Apps control panel.
Interestingly,
Google already offers most of the aforementioned security policy capabilities
for other major
platforms.
Google
began supporting Research In Motion's BlackBerry Enterprise Server in August 2009, and
covered Apple's iPhone, Nokia S60 and Windows Mobile last February.
With
more than 200,000 Android devices activated each day, some of which are being
used by corporate employees for business communications, it was high time for
Google to do the same for its own platform.
Enterprise Mobility News & Reviews 
