Effective cybersecurity is the cornerstone of modern hyperconnectivity

Organisations should concentrate on the details – starting with good password management

 

The modern digital economy is evolving quickly. With the rise of online shopping, challenger banks and fintech innovation, as well as the likes of cryptocurrency and blockchain, new transformative technologies are rapidly changing the way organisations do business and how consumers make everyday payments. Of course, some recent developments have been accelerated by the financial services industry, where these technologies present a future of a frictionless digital economy. However, such an economy relies on increased hyperconnectivity and exposes users to a whole new range of threats, from potential ransomware to phishing scams to ‘shady’ transactions.

With an increasingly digital economy, cybersecurity will of course become ever more important. As revealed by the Cyber Security Breaches Survey 2020, the frequency and sophistication of cybercrime is rising steadily year on year. Almost half of businesses (46 per cent) and a quarter of charities (26 per cent) reported cybersecurity breaches or attacks in the past 12 months. Those reporting cyber incidents are also experiencing more frequent attacks this year, with some being targeted at least once a week. To deliver a safe digital economy, consumers and businesses must ensure they are fully cyber-secure, starting with the basics and everyday authentication.  

 

Voice recognition is becoming another viable biometric technique for authentication. However, it must be measured against both the ambient background, such as when speaking in a bar, on a train, on a street or at a sports arena. There has not been much movement in trying to implement voice authentication, but it does play a part in some multi-factor systems. The main barrier to any widespread adoption has been the problem of aural eavesdropping. This is where casual or malicious bystanders may overhear private information spoken by screen readers or users.

 

The objective of biometric identity authentication is to establish a bond of trust between a system and the user who is requesting system access. More specifically, identity authentication ascertains a level of trust regarding who the user claims to be. It follows that the more accurate the chosen authentication method the user can present to prove their identity, the stronger this bond of trust becomes.

 

To conclude, while biometric, authenticator apps or hardware token solutions may not provide us with the complete authentication solution businesses and consumers need to more fully secure their accounts and systems, they will play an increasingly important role in the future. Until some superior mechanism is created, proper multi-factor authentication via hardware security keys is the gold standard and will offer a strong line of defence.

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Kevin Curran is a senior member of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) and Professor of Cyber Security at Ulster University. To find out more on the rise of cybercrime, visit the National Crime Agency.

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