Multi-Factor IT Authentication Hampers Progress, Say 47% US Companies

Multi-factor authentication is losing its popularity as protection against hacking and is ignored by nearly half of US organizations as they believe it slows down progress of end users, says a survey by IT security provider IS Decisions. The study found workers in the US lose around 22 minutes per week because of complicated security steps, with 47% of the companies interviewed saying these measures hindered production.

The survey revealed that 28% of companies rejected multi-factor verification because of infrastructure issues and 18% because they felt it took up too much time.

The report advocates use of alternative methods of protection such as context-aware security rules, which make it difficult for attackers to compromise networks despite a valid login. The report also cites the National Institute of Standards and Technology, which recently advised against using SMS as a second factor of authentication because it could be too easily exploited by cybercriminals.

For more on this, click here.