If a criminal knew where you lived, and could easily steal your house keys, it wouldn’t take much for them to walk into your home and start helping themselves to your valuables.
But imagine if you kept your keys in a safe that can only be accessed with an ever-changing security code. And the only way to get that code is through a secure phone app that needs your fingerprint or face to prove that it’s really you.
You’ve now used Multi-Factor Authentication, also known as MFA, which adds layers of security to keep your valuables safe.
You’ll recognize the MFA process if you use online banking. It’s become the standard way to make it harder for criminals to access important data, like your financial or personal medical information.
But shockingly, there are still countless businesses in the Albuquerque-Santa Fe area that don’t use MFA to protect their valuable data.
That’s the view of IT specialist Paul Quintana of local business Zia Networks:
He said: “Too many owners and managers here are still using simple usernames and passwords in the office. It’s the tech equivalent of writing your address on your key fob and leaving it on the coffee shop table while you go to the bathroom. To a clued-up intruder, you may as well have just left the front door open.”
Most of us now use MFA to log in to our banking apps and many of our personal online accounts. So it’s surprising how little security businesses are using to keep their data safe. That data often includes customers’ private, personal information. If that fell into the wrong hands, the consequences could be disastrous.
The frightening fact is that most small companies that suffer a serious cyber attack don’t survive. The cost of recovery, and the damage to their reputation, is just too great.
Paul added: “Cyber attacks are getting more and more sophisticated, and business owners could be risking everything if they don’t make the simple step up to MFA.
“We do this kind of work every day, so we know that for most companies Multi-Factor Authentication isn’t difficult to implement. But the security benefits are huge – that’s why we recommend that all Albuquerque-Santa Fe businesses should upgrade to MFA right away.”
Zia Networks has produced a full guide to help businesses implement MFA, accessible free from their website.
