Security concerns are ever-increasing. Data breaches seem to pop up in the news every other day and it’s costing businesses millions of dollars every year. It’s not just the big businesses either. Approximately one-third of cyber attacks are directed at companies with fewer than 250 employees. This is a troubling trend that isn’t going away any time soon.
Even if you are aware of the necessity of tight security, certain measures can be expensive or affect your entire system, resulting in it being offline while issues are fixed. Not only is this a headache for everyone involved, but it can also result in a loss of revenue.
While having antivirus software, a secure firewall and correctly executed encryption technology are all important aspects of security, these can be bypassed by a savvy hacker. Even periodically checking for vulnerabilities doesn’t guarantee your business’ security is up to par.
Multi-factor authentication (MFA) is a simple, streamlined method of security that allows remote access to your employees to ensure that they can connect to your system and conduct important business, no matter where they are. MFA gives them entry while keeping your systems safe by looking at patterns such as their location, login behaviors and the type of system being accessed. If there are any red flags, the system will prompt the user to enter a one-time password, usually received via email or text. If someone other than your employee is trying to get in, they will not have access to this one-time code and will not be granted admission.
Here are 5 ways MFA is the right choice for adding an extra layer of security to your business systems.
It can be easy for hackers to access login credentials. Passwords are often weak or easily guessed if a person has the right information. Passwords such as “password” or that use a person’s birth year or child’s name are common and hackers easily exploit this. Hackers can also gain valuable information by using phishing, keylogging or pharming techniques to trick people into providing their credentials, often without them immediately knowing that they’ve been compromised.
Data breaches are on the rise. In 2018, 4.5 billion records were compromised. Operating under the false sense of security that it will “never happen to you” could be a regrettable mistake.
The risk is more than just data. Once hackers have access to your systems, they can destroy or damage data or software, change access to programs, or spread malicious viruses. They can even hold information for ransom, costing businesses big bucks with likely no repercussions for the perpetrators.
It’s easy to implement. Often, software changes can have a variety of unexpected or unattended consequences. MFA is virtually non-intrusive and is easy to implement into your systems. And employees will most likely be used to the process as more and more companies are adopting this security feature, including banks, online gaming, emails and more.
An inexpensive security add-on. Software and IT professionals can get pricey. And if it works, it’s worth the cost. But MFA is low-cost with a high success rate. You can’t beat that.
The complexities of online security are undeniable. So, if you can utilize a simple tool like multi-factor authentication, why not do it?