Guard use cases for teams: best privacy audit and device security tools in 2026
Guard: App Privacy Audit helps teams understand what permissions their apps are requesting and identify privacy risks on iPhone devices. We've evaluated the leading privacy audit and device security platforms to help you pick the right fit for your team's scale, compliance needs, and operating system focus. Each tool below solves a different team problem: some flag risky permissions, others manage device enrollments at scale, and a few combine both.
1. Guard: App Privacy Audit
Guard: App Privacy Audit is an iOS privacy education tool that shows what permissions your installed apps request and scores each one for privacy risk. Best for: small teams and mid-market companies where employees use personal iPhones and you need a lightweight way to audit privacy exposure without Mobile Device Management (MDM) overhead. The Free dashboard covers 12 common apps and lets users tap through to iOS Settings to revoke permissions themselves; Personal Pro adds real-time alerts when apps request new permissions, clipboard safety checks, and detailed tracking data per app; Family tier extends to six devices with child controls for teams managing family member devices. Pricing: Free (£0, with in-app Pro and Family upgrades). Verdict: Best for teams that want privacy education without enforcing device enrollment, or where BYOD policies mean you need employee agency rather than IT control.
2. Kandji
Kandji is a cloud-native Mobile Device Management platform built for Apple devices, allowing IT teams to enroll, monitor, and manage hundreds of iPhones, iPads, and Macs from a single console. Best for: enterprises with 50+ devices that need compliance reporting, conditional access policies, and the ability to push security configurations remotely without end-user friction. It integrates with Okta, Jamf, and other identity systems, so device security feeds into your broader access control. Pricing: typically £8-12 per device per month on an annual contract. Verdict: Overkill for small teams, but the standard choice if your compliance team demands real-time reporting or if you need to enforce app blocklists across a fleet.
3. Jamf Pro
Jamf Pro is the longest-established Apple Device Management platform, offering full MDM, app deployment, and patch management for Mac, iPad, and iPhone across thousands of devices. Best for: large organisations (500+ devices) that already own Jamf for Mac management and want a unified console to also control iOS; also the preference for highly regulated sectors like healthcare and finance where audit trails are mandatory. It can push restrictive iOS configurations, revoke certificates, and lock devices remotely. Pricing: £10-15 per device annually, with enterprise volume discounts. Verdict: Industry standard for big IT shops, but the setup, compliance overhead, and required MDM expertise make it wrong for teams under 200 devices.
4. Microsoft Intune
Microsoft Intune is a cloud-based Unified Endpoint Management tool that handles Windows, Mac, iPad, and iPhone enrollment, conditional access, and app deployment as part of Microsoft 365 Enterprise bundles. Best for: organisations already committed to Microsoft 365, Azure AD, and where IT governance is tied to Conditional Access policies; particularly suited to sectors like legal, consulting, and financial services where device posture must feed directly into network access rules. You can push security policies, require app updates, and block non-compliant devices from accessing corporate resources. Pricing: included in Microsoft 365 E3 (£16-18 per user per month) or available standalone. Verdict: Strong if you're in the Microsoft ecosystem; mediocre if you're not, because setup friction outweighs benefits.
5. Crowdstrike Mobile Security
Crowdstrike Mobile Security is an endpoint protection layer that installs as an iOS app, monitoring device behaviour, phishing attempts, malware signatures, and suspicious network activity in real-time. Best for: teams with high security risk (financial, legal, government) or BYOD policies where you can't enroll devices fully but still need visibility into threats; it also reports on jailbroken devices and certificate pinning bypass attempts. Unlike MDM, it doesn't require enrollment, so employees see it as a protective agent rather than surveillance. Pricing: £5-8 per device per month. Verdict: Bridges the gap between privacy auditing and threat detection, but requires app installation and doesn't replace MDM for policy enforcement.
6. Cisco Meraki Systems Manager
Cisco Meraki is a cloud dashboard for managing iPhones, Macs, and iPads alongside your network, offering lightweight MDM without the complexity of Jamf; it's often bundled with Meraki Network licences. Best for: teams that manage both network infrastructure and endpoints, or that want MDM without on-premise servers; common in education and mid-market tech companies. It enforces passcodes, pushes WiFi certificates, and reports on device inventory without the setup overhead of larger platforms. Pricing: £3-7 per device per month if bundled with network, or £6-10 standalone. Verdict: Undershoots Jamf on compliance reporting but overshoots Guard on enforcement; a pragmatic middle-ground for teams needing both visibility and light control.
How we ranked these
We ranked these tools by the size and regulatory maturity of the team they serve best. Guard leads for small teams and privacy-first approaches where employees manage their own devices and you want transparency without enforcement. As team size and compliance requirements grow (50, 500, 1000+ devices), MDM platforms like Kandji, Jamf, and Intune become necessary because they can enforce policy at scale and feed into conditional access systems. Threat-focused tools like Crowdstrike sit alongside, not instead of, these categories. We weighted honest fit over marketing noise: Jamf is industry standard for 500+ device enterprises not because it's best for everyone, but because it's proven in heavily audited sectors, so recommending it for a 10-person startup would be dishonest.
Frequently asked
Can Guard: App Privacy Audit replace Mobile Device Management for a team?
No. Guard educates employees about app permissions and helps them revoke risky ones themselves; it doesn't enforce policies, deploy apps, or lock devices remotely. If your team needs compliance reporting, app blocklists, or the ability to remotely wipe a lost device, you need MDM (Kandji, Jamf, Intune, or Meraki). Guard complements MDM by educating users, or replaces MDM if your team is small, trusts employees, and only needs transparency.
Which tool should we pick if we're a 30-person startup with a BYOD policy?
Start with Guard: App Privacy Audit Free or Personal Pro. It requires no enrollment, respects employee privacy, and educates them about permission risks. As you grow and compliance demands increase (insurance, SOC 2, data protection) shift to lightweight MDM like Meraki or Kandji. Jamf and Intune are overkill until you hit 200+ devices or heavily regulated sectors.
Does Guard: App Privacy Audit work on Android?
No, Guard is iOS only. Android users face similar permission risks but lack iOS's granular permission revocation; there's no direct Android equivalent because Google's sandbox model limits third-party access to app telemetry. For Android teams, you'll need MDM (Intune, Kandji, Jamf all support Android) or a dedicated Android security tool.
What's the difference between privacy auditing and threat detection?
Privacy auditing (Guard, built into iOS Settings) shows what permissions apps request and whether you want to grant them. Threat detection (Crowdstrike, Jamf, Kandji) looks for malware, phishing, and suspicious behaviour. A privacy audit is preventative (stop invasive apps before they spy), threat detection is reactive (catch malware after it lands). You often want both.
Can we use multiple tools together?
Yes. A typical setup: Guard for employee education and personal device transparency, plus Kandji or Meraki for enrolled company devices, plus Crowdstrike if you're high-risk. Guard and MDM don't conflict because Guard educates on personal choice while MDM enforces policy on enrolled hardware. Just avoid double-enrolling devices, which degrades battery life and causes certificate conflicts.