Firm Phone or BYOD Forum

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Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 20, 2016 5:26 pm

Take the stipend or get a separate phone (firm covers cost). Stories and antidotes appreciated. Thanks!

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 20, 2016 6:08 pm

I am also curious about this. I have been told by some to get a separate device just so you can separate work from personal life. But I hate the thought of carrying two phones.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 20, 2016 6:29 pm

Took the stipend. I loathe having two phones; had to do the bberry thing in consulting, wasn't down. Some people say it 'separates their work from their personal life'--I call bullshit. You still have to take your phones everywhere, now you just have double the pain in the ass.

The one downside is battery life on my iphone, but the firm gave me a portable charger that I use.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 20, 2016 8:29 pm

Any security concerns? Can the firm wipe everything? Phone number issues?

h2go

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by h2go » Tue Sep 20, 2016 9:11 pm

Anonymous User wrote:Any security concerns? Can the firm wipe everything? Phone number issues?
In my experience, the firms technically have the ability to wipe everything remotely if you lose the phone. Never heard of it being an issue.

EDIT:

They also don't let you jailbreak your phone. So that can be annoying if you like a bit more freedom than iOS normally allows.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Tue Sep 20, 2016 9:39 pm

Used my personal phone as a summer associate, and will probably continue to do so.

Pros
More convenient than two phones (esp. important for women, who have small or no pockets)
Looks like you're working when really you're checking Facebook (useful both at work and in boring social situations)
Can sync with iPad if you like working with a bigger screen.
Upon request, IT can also wipe personal data if you lose it.

Cons
All the firm apps took up a lot of space.
Notifications from constant and irrelevant firm-wide emails.
Mail app synced with personal contacts; had to be super careful typing in email addresses.
6 digit passcode required.
Feels weirdly intrusive the firm has so much access to your personal phone (caveat: I have no idea what they can actually see)

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Desert Fox

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Desert Fox » Tue Sep 20, 2016 10:20 pm

Your firm is going to expect you check your email all the time anyway. Just Do byob
Last edited by Desert Fox on Sat Jan 27, 2018 2:18 am, edited 1 time in total.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Sep 21, 2016 12:26 am

Anonymous User wrote:Used my personal phone as a summer associate, and will probably continue to do so.

Pros
More convenient than two phones (esp. important for women, who have small or no pockets)
Looks like you're working when really you're checking Facebook (useful both at work and in boring social situations)
Can sync with iPad if you like working with a bigger screen.
Upon request, IT can also wipe personal data if you lose it.

Cons
All the firm apps took up a lot of space.
Notifications from constant and irrelevant firm-wide emails.
Mail app synced with personal contacts; had to be super careful typing in email addresses.
6 digit passcode required.
Feels weirdly intrusive the firm has so much access to your personal phone (caveat: I have no idea what they can actually see)
Did they give you the option to get a second phone as a SA?

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kellyfrost

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by kellyfrost » Wed Sep 21, 2016 12:38 am

I currently carry two devices, a personal and business phone. I really don't mind carrying two phones and have become used to it. Battery life becomes much less of an issue when you have two phones on you.

The only negatives that I see with using a business phone for both business and personal are:
There are usually no clearly defined parameters on what employer has access to on the phone or what you are not allowed to download, view, do,ect.
You never know what your buddy or significant others might send you via text or picture message.
You might be tracked by GPS, who knows?

My biggest concern would be if the employee had access to my internet search history...that would be...uh... Interesting.
Last edited by kellyfrost on Sat Jan 27, 2018 3:31 pm, edited 1 time in total.

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haus

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by haus » Wed Sep 21, 2016 1:18 am

For accesses to enterprise systems whether company owned or BYOD it is fairly common to control the device via some form of Mobile Device Management (MDM). There are many vendors offering these products, and the specific features vary from vendor to vendor, but you can get a basic feel for the common options by looking at the features here

https://www.bushel.com

Almost everyone will use the software management (for patching), remote lock/wipe for lost devices. When it comes to tracking user location or what users are doing/reading this will vary. In gov it seems common to log this information (in case a reason arises to look into these matters), but few seem to be willing to spend the time/resources to extensively monitor as a matter of course.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Sep 21, 2016 1:29 am

How much is the stipend for SAs? I have a backup phone that's lying around, might as well take the stipend

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Sep 21, 2016 10:22 am

Anonymous User wrote:Did they give you the option to get a second phone as a SA?
To be honest, I don't remember since I was planning on using my own phone anyway. I know we had the option of personal phones or a firm-issued Blackberry. I do recall one summer having two phones, neither of which was a Blackberry, but no idea if she got a stipend. I think full-time associates get stipends for personal phones (to upgrade the phone or offset cost of data plan), and summers were eligible for reimbursement if we incurred extra expenses due to using a personal phone for work.

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tfer2222

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by tfer2222 » Wed Sep 21, 2016 11:34 am

kellyfrost wrote:I currently carry two devices, a personal and business phone. I really don't mind carrying two phones and have become used to it. Battery life becomes much less of an issue when you have two phones on you.

The only negatives that I see with using a business phone for both business and personal are:
There are usually no clearly defined parameters on what employer has access to on the phone or what you are not allowed to download, view, do,ect.
You never know what your buddy or significant others might send you via text or picture message.
You might be tracked by GPS, who knows?

My biggest concern would be if the employee had access to my internet search history...that would be...uh... Interesting.
+1

I always vote two phones. I feel uncomfortable having any of my personal phone usage/messages come anywhere near a work-related device. And two phones = 2x the battery for using maps, looking stuff up, etc. I get that some people find it annoying to have two full phones but it doesn't bother me at all anymore.

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tfer2222

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by tfer2222 » Wed Sep 21, 2016 11:39 am

Anonymous User wrote:Take the stipend or get a separate phone (firm covers cost). Stories and antidotes appreciated. Thanks!
also lol @ "antidotes"

SplitMyPants

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by SplitMyPants » Wed Sep 21, 2016 11:51 am

really wish apple/samsung/etc would just develop some sort of enterprise OS that allows for "multiple desktops" of sorts where you could: (1) easily switch from you work "desktop" and personal "desktop", (2) control what notifications get through to the other "desktop" regardless of which one you are in so that you do not miss important emails, (3) all the while ensuring total separation of calendar events and contacts etc...

Especially now that we are seeing 128gb phones, this should not be hard at all. There was talk about phones starting to have dual SIM ports, which seems totally useless. I don't give two shits that a partner has my personal cell phone number, I just don't want his contact info able to auto populate into an unprofessional/inappropriate message or email I'm about to send out

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cron1834

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by cron1834 » Wed Sep 21, 2016 12:27 pm

Finished my SA having used my own phone exclusively. Figured two phones would be too inconvenient. I got sick of the firm's stuff murdering my battery, though. Going to use two phones upon return.

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unlicensedpotato

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by unlicensedpotato » Wed Sep 21, 2016 12:34 pm

I use two phones -- I like having a separate number and separate texts. I have two phones with me during the day but I'll leave the work phone at home if I'm going out at 11 and I'm not on anything urgent. NY people may not have that luxury.

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elendinel

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by elendinel » Wed Sep 21, 2016 1:10 pm

I always use two phones. Reduces the amount of data the employer has access to, the degree of control they have over your personal device, prevents you from accidentally mixing up email accounts/contacts on the phone (if your phone doesn't come with separated workspaces), helps reduce battery drain, gives you more control over what you put on the device (i.e., may not be allowed to download certain apps on the phone once it's a "work phone," for security reasons), etc.

GPS data concerns would apply whether or not they give you a BB or you bring in an iPhone; pretty much smartphones these days come with GPS tracking.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by gasfard » Wed Sep 05, 2018 2:36 pm

in choosing a firm phone, should one go for a larger phone for larger screen estate to read emails, or a smaller phone? :shock: :shock:

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almondjoy

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by almondjoy » Wed Sep 05, 2018 4:54 pm

gasfard wrote:in choosing a firm phone, should one go for a larger phone for larger screen estate to read emails, or a smaller phone? :shock: :shock:
If “larger phone” means iPhone 8+ (or its android equivalent), then sure. If it means Galaxy Note 9, then no.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Anonymous User » Wed Sep 05, 2018 6:01 pm

You're gonna need one for the plug, and one for the load.

In all seriousness, I put the firm apps on my personal phone as an SA and didn't like it. Gonna see what the options are for next summer and try it out too.

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BeeTeeZ

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by BeeTeeZ » Wed Sep 05, 2018 10:54 pm

I'm definitely gonna use two phones. In my personal life I don't like answering numbers I'm unfamiliar with. If I use one phone, I'd have to err on the side of caution and answer. If it ends up being an ex, solicitor, telemarketer, scammer, or just a wrong number, that would be annoying. More annoying to me than carrying a second phone.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Wacked Wombat » Thu Sep 06, 2018 12:33 pm

Going to ask a follow up. Had a firm issued phone for my SA and was more annoyed by carrying two phones then my personal stuff. Thinking of going with a firm-issued phone. Wanted to keep my same number from my personal phone and just use that phone for both purposes. Anyone know if its possible to keep the same number so that I don't have to reach out to all my contacts with my new number?

pleasedonttouchmyRAP

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by pleasedonttouchmyRAP » Thu Sep 06, 2018 6:54 pm

Wacked Wombat wrote:Going to ask a follow up. Had a firm issued phone for my SA and was more annoyed by carrying two phones then my personal stuff. Thinking of going with a firm-issued phone. Wanted to keep my same number from my personal phone and just use that phone for both purposes. Anyone know if its possible to keep the same number so that I don't have to reach out to all my contacts with my new number?
Just put the firm apps on your personal phone. Or if you want a shiny new phone, a lot of firms will give you a technology stipend of a few hundred $$$.

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Re: Firm Phone or BYOD

Post by Mobster1983 » Thu Sep 06, 2018 7:29 pm

Subscribing to this thread. Starting with the feds next week (honors) and didn't give this much consideration. Just figured I'd use my own. After reading this and thinking about it, I will have to seriously consider a separate phone. No idea what my options even are, but we will see.

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