Password Management Tools
The importance of passwords today can’t be understated. However, because we are faced with so many places to login it’s nearly impossible (and insecure) to keep passwords in your head. Well, unless you have an incredible memory to remember 50+ complex long passwords with a mix of letters, numbers and symbols. A Password Management program allows you to securely generate, store and use complex passwords that are different for every place you need them. To learn more take a look at my favorite personal choice, LastPass. If you are a client of arielMIS, contact us about a great new Password Management tool that we offer to manage all of the passwords for your entire organization!
Multi-factor Authentication (MFA) and Two-factor authentication
WIkipedia defines MFA as a method of confirming a user’s claimed identity in which a computer user is granted access only after successfully presenting two or more pieces of evidence (or factors) to an authentication mechanism. For you that means entering your password and plus having another code available only to you to confirm that it’s you logging into the application or website. Your bank may send a text with a code to your phone that you must enter. Or call you with a recorded code that you must enter. My favorite Multi-factor authentication tool is the LastPass Authenticator or the Google Authenticator for your Smartphone. They both work the same way by presenting codes that refresh every 30 seconds or so. Any application that supports MFA will have instructions that you can follow to setup your Authenticator or other MFA options. Make a point to setup MFA for all of your web applications (Social Media, Email, Online Banking, Online Stores, etc). Here are the links to some of the more common sites that offer MFA to get you started but just type in your application and the term MFA or Two-Factor Authentication to find out if the application or website you use offers MFA:
- Microsoft Account – Note that this is for your Microsoft account, not Outlook.com or Office 365
- Microsoft Office 365 (We advise that you contact your IT Advisor for advice on setting up MFA for Office 365 as there are considerations that need to be discussed)