When you consider security for wireless operations, you need to cover three main areas–device, application, and communications security.
Any valuable company data that resides on your mobile device must be protected. The small size of a mobile device increases the chances of its being misplaced or stolen. Device security can be achieved via the use of power-on authentication functions that are usually available on PDA devices. This password feature can protect data by ensuring that only the device's owner can access data. Another possibility is password protection for such mobile device functions as the infrared communications feature. You might decide to encrypt the data on your mobile device so it is unreadable to anyone who does not have an appropriate algorithm and key.
As on desktop systems, data on a mobile device can be corrupted. Although less common than on desktop systems, viruses can still attack and compromise data on a wireless device. Third-party anti-virus software can provide needed protection for the data stored on your mobile device.
Securing your application can involve a variety of user password authentication and permissions protections. Your application can require a password or other user authentication before it executes, or the database may require a password for access.
Security for your communications is essential for wireless systems. The nature of wireless networks can leave them more vulnerable to attack from external sources than wired solutions. Wireless access points reside in an unlicensed frequency band that can be easily breached by wireless hackers. Secure Sockets Layer (SSL), a secure protocol based on TCP/IP, uses key encryption and digital certificates to encrypt communication. A Virtual Private Network (VPN) can also provide authentication and encryption features to protect communications.