ATandT Security Breach May Blight Business Use for the IPad

It's too early to gauge what sort of hit the iPad will take among enterprises and business leaders who previously believed Apple's iPad was a dandy device for corporate road warriors.

Goatse Security exploited a security hole on AT&T's Website that enabled it to access the e-mail addresses of 114,000 owners of iPad 3G devices. The Federal Bureau of Investigation has opened an inquiry.

That could cloud what was a previously fine forecast for the adoption of the tablets among businesses. Researchers at Citrix last month said 84 percent of 494 customers surveyed said they would allow their employees to use their personal iPads for work.

Eighty percent of respondents said they would buy an iPad for business use, with 87 percent of those surveyed claiming productivity tools as the primary use case. Moreover, 90 percent of respondents will use iPad for business e-mail as well as presentations.

Citrix found in a follow-up survey June 10 that 56 percent of 558 businesses polled would buy iPads for their employees to use.

"The fact that IT can safely provide access to company apps, data and virtual desktops without managing the device will make the iPad a game changer for business beyond just the form factor and features," said Chris Fleck, vice president of community and solutions development at Citrix.

A caveat: Citrix waved a carrot to respondents in the form of a chance to win a free iPad, which likely boosted users' spirits about the use case for iPads in the enterprise. Who wouldn't wax ebullient with the chance to win a free computer?

Recalling the original reticence for business users to adopt the iPhone instead of a RIM BlackBerry for business use, eWEEK took its own brief poll of industry analysts to gauge their feelings of the use cases for the iPad in businesses.

Next: Analysts Discuss Viability of iPad in the Enterprise >>