How To Secure Mobile Devices Used In Clinical Trials

By Richard Wzorek

In the foreseeable future, biopharmaceutical companies that do not allow those working on clinical trials to have mobile access to the systems and data they need, will be at a competitive disadvantage. Internal users, investigator sites, Clinical Research Organizations (CROs), central labs, and other vendors all have a growing expectation that they can access trial data and applications “where they live,” in other words, on their mobile devices. Indeed, worldwide usage trends and prospective productivity gains make a compelling case for moving in a mobile direction. However, some inherent security risks complicate the landscape significantly, and decision makers should proceed with their eyes wide open. Here, we discuss the leading security risks to consider and offer recommendations on how to mitigate or avoid them.