There’s a lot more talk about potential threats to mobile security that any actual activity. But as mobile devices increasingly become used to initiate transactions, there’s no doubt that mobile computing devices present a tempting target for cyber criminals.

With the rise of mobile computing just about every task associated with security management is getting more complicated. Where there was once a limited number of devices to worry about there are now an array of options that are all finding their way into the enterprise. The challenge facing IT organizations is finding better ways to manage new classes of devices that with each new addition can consume increasingly large amounts of sensitive corporate data.

With the rise of bring your own device (BYOD) in the workplace a lot of IT people suddenly have a lot of visibility into personal data residing on devices that connect to the corporate network. Obviously, from a privacy perspective it’s only a matter of time before someone accidentally or on purpose winds up sharing data they shouldn’t.

Imagine a vulnerability that would allow malware to take over your mobile device; turn on the microphone, camera and GPS; and transmit everything it hears, while simultaneously sending copies of e-mail and text messages to a remote server. Sounds like a nightmare, right? Unfortunately, it exists. Worse, your security software can’t stop it.

In a story that is getting all too common, Internet-based businesses are getting caught once again in the act of taking user data without permission.

The latest company to attain dishonorable mention is Path, the social networking and photo sharing site.