More and more, organizations are looking for cost-effective alternatives to traditional passwords that increase security without affecting usability. Many people believe that push notification authentication, a newer mobile-based authentication method, could be the answer.

Historically, magnetic stripe cards were used for access control. However, these cards aren’t particularly secure, as the information stored on them is typically not encrypted. Additionally, they have to be physically swiped, leading to issues with wear and tear.

As part of our 2FA Explained series, we recently looked at magnetic stripe cards. Another authentication method that has long been in use and can be printed onto cards are 2D barcodes.

In Part 1 of this series, we discussed the challenges that come with onboarding employees and granting access, specifically determining which permissions to give an employee, providing employees with day one access, and managing ad-hoc access requests.

Today, there are many card-based options for controlling physical and network access. Although many organizations have transitioned to newer, more secure options, such as smart cards and RFID cards, others still have  magnetic stripe cards in place.

From managing global IT operations and large-scale projects to successfully revamping teams and systems for organizations with struggling IT departments, Melissa Bayless brings an extensive array of IT experience to Identity Automation. And we’re glad to have her on the team!

Identity lifecycle management presents a number of challenges: You need to quickly onboard employees so that they have access to the applications needed to do their jobs, you need to immediately offboard them when they leave the organization so they’re not a security threat, and you need to ensure IT isn’t bogged down with all changes in between as employees shift roles, get promoted, change locations, and so on.

Companies and end-users alike are constantly looking for authentication methods that lower barriers to entry and improve user experience without compromising security.

In the healthcare industry, a lot of energy goes into driving practitioner efficiency and making patient data easier for clinicians to access. But is enough focus being put on security and protecting patient data?

News headlines indicate the answer is a resounding no. There have been a slew of notable healthcare breaches in recent years.

Smart cards are cards or cryptographic USB tokens that are used for a number of authentication purposes, including physical access (buildings, rooms), computer and network access, and some secure remote access solutions (virtual private networks (VPN), portals).