Two smartphones in one hand – Mir – Kommersant

Mobile operators in the United States recorded significant growth in the number of subscribers throughout 2022. And this is when almost every adult American has at least one smartphone. The solution to this paradox, as it turns out, lies in the corporate sector: more and more American companies are forcing their employees to use a separate communication device at work.

Corporate America has returned 20 years ago: as in the early 2000s, employees of companies and government agencies are again actively distributing corporate smartphones. The trend, which originated in the first months of the COVID-19 pandemic, instead of fading away with the lifting of restrictions, on the contrary, only intensified in 2022, reports Bloomberg.

US mobile operators are talking about a significant increase in the number of corporate customers. Thus, T-Mobile US CFO Peter Oswaldik noted that the number of corporate clients of his company “grew every quarter in 2022.” However, he did not name specific numbers. The only major carriers that disclose corporate customer data are Verizon Communications and Charter Communications. And last year, both of these companies recorded an increase of more than 50% in the number of subscribers using corporate mobile devices.

Such a rapid growth in the number of corporate communication devices and a return to the times when each employee in the office had two smartphones is primarily due to the tightening of control by the US authorities.

For example, the Securities and Exchange Commission and the Commodity Futures Trading Commission have begun to closely monitor that employees of companies (especially those operating in the financial sector) do not conduct business correspondence on personal devices, including using WhatsApp or via personal email. The same is being sought by corporations that are afraid of leakage of confidential information.

It is almost impossible to figure out exactly which employee leaked, because an employee can easily delete all correspondence from a personal gadget.

Also, late last year, Congress (for federal employees) and several states (for their civil servants) banned the use of TikTok on devices owned by government agencies. And in late February, it was reported that the Joe Biden administration gave government agencies have 30 days to remove TikTok from their devices. Increased scrutiny by authorities who consider the Chinese app a threat to US national security is another reason why employers prefer to issue secure corporate devices to their employees.

According to Gartner analyst Lisa Pierce, issuing a second communication device is not just a privilege. “It’s about a way to control” employees and their handling of corporate data.

Kirill Sarkhanyants