The Importance of Multi-Factor Authentication for Cyber Security

With a single click, almost all companies today can suddenly become the target of damaging cybercrimes. Left exposed, sensitive information is used against companies for ransom, leading to compromised customer data, loss of finances, and a tarnished business image.

“60% of cyber incidents occur against organizations with less than $150M in sales,” says Ross Ingersoll, Executive Risk & Cyber Risk Account Executive with Holmes Murphy. “Furthermore, many of these incidents are occurring within professional service organizations. While construction and manufacturing are not necessarily the businesses you would traditionally think of as targets, these are ultimately the industries facing some of the largest risk today.”

Fortunately, there are tangible actions to lessen the likelihood of these potential catastrophes. According to Ingersoll, a couple of the most proven first steps to minimize risk include exploring different cyber insurance options and safeguarding infrastructure with multi-factor authentication (MFA).

For example, the Colonial Pipeline incident originated from a compromised password that experts believe could have been prevented if stronger multi-factor authentication practices were in place. In the end, the incident resulted in temporarily halting the companies entire fuel distribution.

“The importance of MFA to stay resilient from cyber threats cannot be stressed enough,” says Ingersoll. “In the current environment we are in, it has become an essential control for all businesses to implement.”

Ingersoll also recommends companies supplement their current emergency measures with a dedicated and tested cyber-security incident plan. In the event of a cyber-attack, companies can then focus on getting their business back up and running as soon as possible.

“Businesses should conduct thorough and periodic due diligence throughout the course of the relationship with third-party service providers, including evaluating what your potential risks/vulnerabilities are if they suffered an outage/cyberattack,” says Ingersoll.

Overall, today’s companies can never do too much to keep safe with the various threats to cyber-security. While it may seem like a daunting process at times, implementing multi-factor authentication, coupled with cyber insurance, are both important steps in keeping cyber threats low and data protected.