Webopedia New Term of the Day: What is Consumerization of IT?

"Consumerization of IT ("consumerization") is a phrase used to describe the cycle of information technology (IT) emerging in the consumer market, then spreading to business and government organizations, largely because employees are using the popular "consumer market" technologies and devices at home and then introducing them in the workplace.

"Consumerization of IT Security Concerns: Consumerization of IT not only refers to the use of personal consumer electronics at work -- like iPhones and tablet PCs -- but also online services, including online data storage, web-based email services ("web mail"), and social media or social networking sites like Facebook and Twitter.

"Consumerization is driven by employees who buy their own devices, use their own personal service accounts, install their own applications and then connect to the corporate network -- often without the organization's knowledge.

"For corporate and government organizations, the challenge for IT is that employees using unapproved technologies and devices at work is a network security risk, but even with that understanding is the knowledge that these technologies will still come in to the workplace and be used, even if corporate security policies are in place."

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