Most occupations nowadays require employees to maintain multiple online accounts, a trend that is gaining worldwide prevalence thanks to the COVID-19 pandemic as more people begin to work remotely. Cybersecurity concerns have been an inherent issue in the online world, and remote jobs are no exception.
Most corporate security breaches happen due to poor credential management practices, and the more online accounts employees have to manage, the more loopholes organizations create for hackers. So how should companies mitigate these risks given the strong push towards SaaS integration?
One viable solution lies in SSO, an emerging technology that provides single-click credentials for multiple online accounts without compromising its users’ security.
What Is SSO?
SSO (Single Sign-On) is a holistic, single-point authentication service that enables users to access multiple applications, third-party websites and online accounts using one set of login credentials. Think of SSO like a shopping mall – it consolidates everything you need in one convenient location.
Without SSO, employees would have to remember or keep several credentials and log in to different accounts separately. SSO relies on a third-party identity provider (IdP) to create security tokens that grant users access to multiple accounts via a single login process. By acting as a single point of entry, SSO servers provide an additional layer of security to its users before launching SP (service provider) websites.
How Can Businesses Benefit From SSO?
1. Enhanced Online Security
Most cybersecurity professionals agree that robust password policies make for a decent first line of defense against cyberattacks. While we cannot discount the importance of creating hard-to-guess passwords, it is rather impractical to remember multiple complex credentials. This often forces people to create weak passwords or reuse strong passwords.
In fact, recent research reveals that almost 90% of Internet users aged 18-30 reuse their passwords across several online accounts. Therefore, rather than count on employees to create different, hard-to-guess passwords – which is very impractical – companies should invest in reliable SSO portals that make it easy to implement customized password policies.
2. Less IT Help Desk Workload
Did you know that close to half of all IT help calls happen due to password reset issues, with each call costing $70 on average? Besides the savings on each call avoided, SSO frees up IT teams to work on higher-value tasks.
Not to mention, most SSO providers allow their users to set default application packages for new hires depending on their position, department and level of access. This feature enables new hires to access all the necessary apps from the get-go without much assistance from the IT department.
3. Platform And Device Agnosticism
SSO provides users access to multiple network apps regardless of the devices or operating systems they use. All a user needs is a device that meets the minimum specification requirements and an Internet connection.
4. Employee Productivity Boost
Teams that use SSO spend less time logging into different applications and waiting for password resets when they get locked out of online accounts. When employees cave in to the pressure to set complex passwords, the need for password recoveries rises significantly. Roughly 60% of Internet users perform one or more password resets every 60 days because they forgot a complex password – a practice that could cost companies dearly per reset.
By making the simple switch to SSO, organizations will never have to worry about their employees forgetting important passwords – a master set of credentials unlocks everything. This eliminates the inconveniences and unnecessary costs associated with reusing weak passwords and forgetting complex sets of credentials.
Say No to Bad Credential Management with SSO
As more companies digitize their most valuable assets – proprietary knowledge, client information, financial records and more – the need for more robust security protocols will be a necessity rather than a choice. Businesses looking to improve their network-wide security while boosting employee productivity should look no further than SSO.
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