Hundreds of millions of hacking attempts take place daily. These hacks are targeted at government intuitions, private businesses, and individuals.
The war that security experts have waged against actors that aim to steal private data has been a long one. It’s a war that gets progressively complicated as technology improves. Through security expert’s efforts though, one tool has emerged as being among the most valuable and effective.
That tool is 2-factor authentication.
There are several benefits of 2-factor authentication that you as a business owner and your customers can enjoy the moment it’s enabled. If you’re curious to know exactly what those benefits are, keep reading to find out more!
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Better Security for Your Employees
At the end of the day, 2-factor authentication (or “two factor authentication” as it’s sometimes called) enables one big advantage that in turn, supports other benefits. That big advantage is better security.
So, what is 2-factor authentication?
2-factor authentication is when you have to confirm that you’re logging into an application or a device via another application or device.
As an example, if you typed in a password to log onto your work computer, you’d receive a text message asking you to confirm your log-in attempt. Once you confirm on your phone, your work computer would accept your password and give you access to your machine.
That additional confirmation step makes it so hackers would need to not only steal your password to get access to your private data but would also need to have physically stolen your secondary authentication device.
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Building Trust With Customers
If your business has digital products that interface with consumers, those consumers will love you for allowing them to use 2-factor authentication.
Why?
Because 2-factor authentication gives your customers the peace of mind they crave when accessing and sharing information online. It lets them know that even if their passwords were to leak, the odds of their accounts being accessed by third parties would be virtually non-existent given that those bad actors can’t access their authentication devices.
Believe us when we say that instilling confidence in consumers can go a long way when it comes to how willing they are to interface with your products.
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Lower IT Costs
Recovering from data leaks is an expensive process. As a matter of fact, some estimates say the average business will be liable for millions of dollars in damages if their corporate data falls into hacker’s hands.
A big part of that massive expense will be having IT teams run damage control after your systems have been inappropriately accessed.
2-factor authentication can help you avoid hiring teams to work around the clock to re-secure your network. When you consider that, it’s obvious why this means of preventive security has become popular.
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Lower Legal Exposure
With data leaks come lawsuits. Look no further than class actions taken against companies that have lost consumer credit card data and other personal information in the past to understand that truth.
While 2-factor authentication doesn’t protect against every means of consumer data leakage, it can cover a large portion of your exposure. That coverage not only lowers your risk of leaks but gives you ammunition in court if you need to showcase to legal bodies your team’s pro-activity when it comes to protecting customers.
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Reduced Help Desk Pressure
Not only does 2-factor authentication help people log into their accounts but it can also help them re-access their locked accounts. That’s helpful when customers forget their passwords.
By letting people reset their passwords through 2-factor authentication, they won’t have to call your customer support team for help. That reduction in calls will clear up your support lines to help you deal with more pressing customer concerns in a more timely manner.
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Flexible Options
When you think of 2-factor authentication, the most common image that pops into your head is probably verifying log-in attempts through text message. But what if your customers don’t have a cellphone?
While cellphone ownership rates are over 95% in the United States, to accommodate those that don’t have phone access, 2-factor authentication offers other means of secure account entry.
For example, login authentication codes can be sent to a client’s email. They can be accessed through the Google Authentication app as well which avoids the need to send texts.
The takeaway here is that the sky is the limit when it comes to your dual authentication options.
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Safer Location Flexibility
In today’s age of COVID, enabling your team to work from anywhere may be a necessity. That location flexibility presents several new risks to your company’s data though, as you may have already noticed in recent months.
Therein lies one of the most relevant benefits of 2-factor authentication. It reduces the ability of new geographical security burdens to adversely affect your business operations.
Our Shared Benefits of 2-Factor Authentication Just Scratch the Surface
We hope that by this point, you’ve been moved by the benefits of 2-factor authentication to the point that your company is ready to take the plunge. If you still need more convincing, we’re happy to say that the advantages we’ve shared just scratch the surface of what you can expect.
After all, enhanced security has a positive impact on every aspect of your corporate and customer experience.
To learn more about what dual authentication can do for you, explore more content on the topic online. You can also talk to local security experts or browse more of the tech-focused content on our blog!
