A secure security infrastructure is built on user permissions and two-factor authentication. They help reduce the risk of accidental or malicious insider activities, limit the impact of data breaches, and ensure regulatory compliance.

Two factor authentication (2FA) is a procedure that requires a user to use a credential from two categories to sign into their account. This could include something the user knows (password or PIN code, security question), something they have (one-time verification passcode sent to their phone or click to investigate an authenticator app) or something they’re (fingerprint or face, retinal scan).

2FA is often a subset of Multi-Factor Authentication, which has more than two factors. MFA is a common requirement in certain industries, for example healthcare (because of the strict HIPAA regulations), ecommerce, and banking. The COVID-19 virus pandemic has increased the importance of security for businesses that require two-factor authentication.

Enterprises are living organisms, and their security infrastructures keep evolving. New access points are introduced every day, users are assigned roles, hardware capabilities evolve and complex systems reach the fingertips of everyday users. It is essential to regularly review the two-factor authentication methods at regular intervals to ensure that they keep up with the latest developments. Adaptive authentication is one method to achieve this. It’s a kind of contextual authentication that activates policies based on timing, location and the manner in which a login request is received. Duo provides a central administrator dashboard which lets you easily monitor and set these kinds of policies.