Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) requires users to prove their identity with more than one type of evidence for increased security.

What is Multi-Factor Authentication?

MFA is a multi-layered security system that validates the identity of users for system logins and other logins where security is required.

A few examples of MFA implemented in day-to-day scenarios include codes generated by smartphone apps, answers to personal security questions, codes sent to an email address or the capture of biometric data, for example fingerprints or facial recognition etc.

MFA utilizes any combination of authentication factors with three types of criteria:

1) What the user knows - this is often a password or other personally identifiable piece of information you indicate, for example your mother’s maiden name or your middle name.

2) What the user has - this is comparable to requiring a key to open a lock, except in the digital world those keys are often tokens.

3) Who the user is - this comprises of biometric data such as fingerprints, retina scans or even location-based information.

Why Do Businesses Need MFA to Protect Consumers?

It's well known that conventional usernames and passwords can easily be compromised. These types of passwords pose a high risk to cybercriminal attacks such as brute force and account takeovers.

As the world heads towards increased criminal sensitivities, especially during this pandemic, deploying multi-factor authentication as part of your consumer identity and access management (CIAM) platform helps you build and maintain solid consumer trust.

What Are The Benefits For Your Business?

The advantages of multi-factor authentication form part of the experience that modern consumers expect from any well-managed organization today. MFA is quickly becoming a standard offering from the biggest tech companies that we deal with.

Not being able to meet these consumer expectations increases your risk of losing a roster of clients to companies that are using CIAM and MFA to protect their data.

Here are the key benefits that MFA delivers:

Better security: It offers additional protection for consumers and employees via multiple security layers.

Amplified conversion: A simplified and streamlined authentication process maintains productivity, leading to increased conversions.

Improved customer trust: Consumers and employees are ensured that their data is safe due to extra security measures.

Reduced operating costs: By reducing your cyber risk, you achieve a higher return on your security spend.

Compliance at its best: Unique to your organization, it mitigates audit findings so you avoid potential fines.

Increased flexibility and productivity: The ability to remove the burden of passwords for employees can lead to improved productivity.

In addition to the above, there are other important secondary benefits that may vary from industry to industry.

Conclusion

Data breaches can have drastic consequences for organizations and the rise of stolen passwords calls for an immediate and more effective solution to protect businesses. Now is the time to get started in implementing successful security solutions with Oxygen IT.

We provide businesses throughout the area in deploying effective security strategies — including MFA. We have specialist expertise in industry leading network security services designed to protect your organization’s critical data and deliver enterprise-grade security solutions.

Contact us to learn more about how MFA and other security solutions can protect your data, reputation, customers and business with Oxygen IT.

Join us for free webinars for the most significant cybersecurity and data backup events and get real life insights from industry experts on how to best defend against current and future threats.

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