User Permissions and Two Factor Authentication

A robust security system is based on user permissions and two-factor authentication. They help reduce the risk of accidental or malicious insider activities, minimize the impact of data breaches and help ensure the compliance of regulatory authorities.

Two factor authentication (2FA) is a method in which a user has to enter a credential in two categories in order to log into their account. This could be something the user knows (password, PIN code, security question) or something they own (one-time verification passcode sent to their phone or an authenticator app) or something they’re (fingerprint or face, retinal scan).

2FA is often a subset to Multi-Factor Authentication, which has more than two factors. MFA is a common requirement in certain industries, including healthcare (because of stringent HIPAA regulations), ecommerce, and banking. The COVID-19 pandemic has also heightened the urgency of security for organizations that require two-factor authentication.

Enterprises are living entities and their security infrastructures are always evolving. Users change roles, hardware capabilities are evolving, and complex systems are now accessible to users. It is important to review your two-factor authentication plan regularly to ensure it keeps pace with the changes. One way view to do that is to utilize adaptive authentication. It is a type of context authentication that will trigger policies based on how it is used, when and when a login request comes in. Duo offers a central administrator dashboard that allows you to easily manage and set these kinds of policies.