10 reasons IT should not support the Apple iPhone

The Apple
iPhone took the consumer mobile space by storm when it was released last June
and quickly became one of the most popular smartphones available. Since then,
business users who've purchased the device for their personal use have been requesting
that their corporate IT departments support it.

Whether the iPhone proves
to be a valuable business tool or a non-issue
for CIOs remains to be seen, but a new report from Forrester
Research suggests that the iPhone may never get a chance to succeed in business.
Forrester says IT departments should refuse to support the devices--at least
for now--for the following 10 reasons.

1) The iPhone Doesn't Allow Data on the Device to be Encrypted

There's currently no way for enterprises to secure sensitive data on iPhones
through file or disk encryption, according to Forrester. There's also no way
for IT to enforce password policies since the decision to use a password (and
when to change it) is up to the user.

2) The iPhone Does Not Natively Support "Push" Corporate E-mail
or Wireless Calendar Syncing

Push e-mail (e-mail that is delivered to handhelds immediately upon receipt
in a user's mailbox) is an essential feature for a business device because of
the productivity such a feature enables, according to Forrester. If users need
to physically retrieve messages--as opposed to having those messages pushed
directly to them--they won't get them as quickly as possible and they'll waste
time in the process. The iPhone can sync with Microsoft Exchange and Lotus Notes
over IMAP and SMTP, Forrester says, but IT infrastructure must be tweaked accordingly
or a separate gateway product must be purchased and even then mail is delivered
only every 15 minutes.

Apple's
device also doesn't wirelessly sync with PCs, which means users must have access
to the company's proprietary USB sync cable to retrieve calendar updates or
contact changes, according to Forrester. If a meeting plan or location has been
changed at the last minute, an iPhone user on the go could easily not get the
notification in time.

3) The iPhone Does Not Run Third-Party Applications Without Voiding Its
Warranty

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