Businesses have adapted to a new operating paradigm in which working from home is the new normal. The remote working setup heightened the importance of accelerating digital transformation as most business processes had to be conducted virtually.
But the digitization of business operations prompted security teams to be increasingly vigilant.They need to monitor and manage employee identity from the devices they use for login. They must also keep track of potentially suspicious activities in networks, applications, and files accessed.
The rapid shift to a remote work model poses security risks to companies, especially without robust digital defenses. Remote workers are often susceptible to hacks and other cybersecurity threats. There might be an increased attempt to commit cybercrimes like corporate data theft, phishing, and identity fraud in a less controlled environment.
Since the start of the pandemic, the reported cybercrimes in the US have increasedby 300%. This is according to FBI’s IC3, or its Internet Crime Complaint Center, which reported a significant rise in received cybersecurity complaints daily since the outbreak.
Accordingly, as of April 2020, 52% of legal and compliance leaders believe that cybersecurity and data breaches are the most increased third-party risk they face.
Organizations must address security threats, particularly issues surrounding identity proofing.They must move past conventional knowledge-based credentials like passwords to authenticate and identify legitimate employees. Ideally, they should implement a biometric multifactor authentication solution.
Using biometric authentication as part of the security process enables better digital protection and a hassle-free user experience. This modern verification method can effectively block data breach attempts by detecting biological traits such as facial characteristics, fingerprints, retinas, and even voices unique to each individual. Such physical attributes are difficult to fake and replicate by cybercriminals who employ even the most sophisticated illegal acts.
Here is an infographic from authID, which discusses the importance of biometric identity assurance in the remote workforce.
