How can your identity security be protected?
Are you using online banking like me? And do you usually set your computer to automatically remember your usernames and passwords used in each site? Even though, I love having those things automatically filled for convenient log-ins without the need for me to remember ANYTHING. However, what if your computer got stolen or hacked? That means all of your sensitive information will easily be used against my will. My auto filled username and password for my online banking account for instance…Ooh I suddenly got the chills.
What if the situation happens in your professional scheme? What if the company’s sensitive data got into the hands of the bad guys or your competitors? I can guarantee that the impact will be more drastic than personal means. Plus, identity security is one of the most crucial challenges that companies and organizations are encountering that has high tendency to cause huge problems, affecting the company, its people, data, and customers. So, business entities started searching for an effective security measure that can help alleviating the risk of those problems mentioned above from happening…
The answer is MFA
What is MFA?
MFA stands for Multi-Factor Authentication, which is a method of authentication that requires at least two devices or factors prior to giving access to resource or system.
Its purpose is to add another layer of prevention to your identity security by strengthening the existing usage of password. The goal is to make it harder for hackers to steal your identity or information. MFA is extremely useful in a business or company’s standpoint as it contributes to the safer working environment.
To give a clearer picture, my university’s website just adopted this MFA method, every time after I log-in with my username and password, the website will send my a push notification to my phone and I have to click ‘allow’ on my phone, in order to fully verify and gain access to the platform.To me, even though it takes more time and effort logging in, it makes me feel more safe enrolling for courses and pay my tuition fee on that particular website.
What do you think about MFA?
Would you trade convenience with security?
Big companies, such as Facebook was forced to implement MFA in the company’s system, after the information of more than 50 million users was exposed, as well as Twitter and Google.
Let’s look at the key advantages of MFA
It establishing a certain level of expectation on the sense of security.
The implementation of MFA can be regarded as an opportunity for companies or organizations to identify and classify their businesses’ expected situations, in accordance with each risk level and specify when the MFA login should be required. Based on different combination of variables, each company can implement MFA differently. For example, Company A chose to implement the system only when facing the high level of risk situations. Then, require employees to log-in via MFA when they request access for specific database or applications, or whenever the employees log-in from off-site and remotely.
MFA can significantly help enhancing the effectiveness of Cybersecurity.
By the fact that cyber-crimes are still increasing, companies are starting to notice about how dangerous it can be for them if the risky events happen. Especially, the goals of cyber criminals are not just hacking vital data, but also to corrupt of destroy it. Thus, the soaring fear has contributed to the more implementation of MFA. However, the data shows that modern cyber criminals are not only targeting big organizations, more than 30% of companies with less than 250 employees have been targeted as victims for cybercrime.
MFA provides a single sign-on solution.
MFA is not only contributing to the more secure access but also making the process of signing into multiple devices easy as it requires just a single set of login credentials. Once the employee access the data through MFA and if his/her identity is verified and granted the authorized access the information, that employee will be automatically allowed to access to other systems, as well, in accordance with their particular user profile. Thus, MFA gives the employees access to a number of resource and data, without requiring them to sign-on to each one separately.
From all of the stated benefits of MFA implementation, I think it is drastically significant for every business to be aware of the existing risk of cybercrime and to be able to foresee the consequences that the company has to face when that kind of unfortunate event happens. Taking preventive measure into consideration, as well as an, effective implementation of an authentication system is a valuable decision. By the reason that it can ensure the cybersecurity and well-being of the company, its people, and customers’ data.
