Did you know that a username and password no longer provides satisfactory security to key business systems and that most business-grade cloud systems, including Office 365 and Xero, now require two forms of authentication by default?
Dramatic Increase in Data Breaches
During the period 2018/19, the OAIC reported a 712% increase in data breaches with 95% of these occurring due to human error or malicious attacks. Why do so many breaches occur? In many cases, employees fall victim to sophisticated attacks (e.g. malware, phishing) resulting in their credentials being obtained by cyber-criminals. Coupled with our password habits being outdated, requiring Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) to access your key systems will make it far less likely your organisation will be breached.
What is Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)?
MFA improves account security making it extremely difficult for hackers to sign in, even if they know or guess your password. It involves your username and password plus another mechanism to prove your identity such as a One-Time Passcode (OTP). You most likely have this setup for your internet banking or to withdraw money from an ATM.
Mandatory MFA in 2020
Data Breach legislation introduced by the Australian Government in 2018 has put the onus on business owners to show due diligence to ensure corporate and customer data is secured. With the Australian Cyber Security Centre (ACSC) also recently reporting attempts to compromise our nation’s critical infrastructure facilities and cyber incidents affecting large Australian companies including Toll Group, BlueScope, and ServiceNSW, improving your organisation’s IT security is more important than ever.
Next Step – Approve Your MFA Deployment
The great news about implementing MFA is there are no on-going costs as the service is included in your Office 365 licensing.
The eNerds team has successfully implemented MFA for many customers so rest assured our mature deployment approach will ensure minimal staff impact. Furthermore, once the solution is in place, users will find MFA easy to use and it will just become the ‘norm’ for their daily authentication process
Contact Us
If you would like to improve your organisation’s security posture, contact the eNerds team via sales@enerds.com.au or call (02) 9922 1370 to schedule your MFA deployment.
I hope these insights were helpful.