Second, mobile OS are converging on MS Windows, making for a single dominant target platform.

Third, Intel’s X-Scale chip set and ARM instruction set are becoming a dominant hardware platform.

Fourth, the emergence of “unified communications”:

the ability to communicate in many different ways using many different applications and devices over disparate networks. Increasingly, individuals and companies will use mobile devices over both cellular data networks and over IP networks for disparate applications such as voice over IP, instant messaging, collaboration tools and accessing key data.

(For more on unified communications, see Ken Camp’s blog and community at http://www.realtime-unifiedcommunications.com/.)

Finally, better battery life is make devices more reliably available for attackers.

Lambs advice is three fold: establish policies, work with telecom providers to see what they can offer in security support and choose your underlying technology carefully. Lamb is an advocate for IP over 3G packet switched networks:

IP networks allow a lot of technology to be introduced that deals with threats," Lamb said. "They give IT people visibility into the data that that is going to these devices and allows them to be sure that data coming into the devices isn't a threat.

The trend toward standardized hardware and software will provide the opportunity to recreate the environment we have with poorly protected PCs. We not intentionally setting ourselves up to repeat history, but that’s exactly what we are doing.