Safer Internet Day And How Two Factor Authentication Can Make It Safer

February 7th, 2012 is officially Safer Internet Day (SID)

. Safer Internet Day is a global campaign that promotes a safer and healthier internet for everyone to use. It is organized by Insafe and was co-founded by the European Union and encourages responsible use of the internet, online technologies and online services. Safer Internet Day spreads across Europe, Asia, Latina America, Australia, and the United States. As more and more people gain access to the internet and more generations of people are connecting online, internet security concerns are on the rise. More elderly people than ever are accessing the internet, joining social media sites, and engaging in online communities. Studies show that almost half of all under 12 year old kids are using facebook.com and other social media sites. With this broad user base and growing number of online users, online security measures need to be strengthened to keep users and their personal information safe. Most internet sites and internet logins for social media sites use strong passwords which are a combination of a login and static password. These static logins and passwords have long been considered safe, but as technology and hackers advance, online security needs to change and advance as well. Two factor authentication is a great way to increase online security and protect users.

Two factor authentication can be incorporated in any online login session and can be relatively cheap to implement. Two factor authentication is a way to authenticate based on two or more of the three types of factors to identify someone. The first factor would be something the user knows, the second factor would be something the user has, and the third factor being something the user is. Combining someones login, or something they know, and combining something that someone has, such as a mobile phone with a onetime password sent to it, is a very effective form and one of the most cost efficient forms of two factor authentication available today. By incorporating a device such as a mobile phone, which most users already have, there is no need for additional hardware to deploy and extra hardware for users to carry around. Two factor authentication can help users protect their personal information by helping to thwart unauthorized users from accessing their accounts.

Using two factor authentication with a login and one time password sent to a mobile device is effective because there are 2 layers of security present. The first layer would be the login and password and the second layer would be the one time password sent to the mobile device to authenticate the user. Even if an unauthorized user were to access someones login and password, they wouldnt be able to retrieve the password that is sent to the mobile device.

Microsoft and AARP conducted a study that found that 83 percent of teens, young adults, parents and older adults are going online to help with family communication. With these generations of users using the internet to connect and communicate with each other, higher security needs to be adapted and used so that these users are protected. Companies such as Microsoft and Google are launching security centers online to provide assistance and guidance for users to navigate the internet more safely, but there needs to be layered security such as two factor authentication to really ensure the safety of users online. Security guides and tips are useful, but what is really protecting users from unauthorized users from trying to access their accounts? Hacking, malware, And phishing tactics have all evolved as the internet landscape has changed, but security has remained stagnant with more users going online and needing online security more than ever.

The focus on Safer Internet Day shouldnt just be on giving guidance and tips on how to navigate the online world more safely, but should be on how organizations can incorporate online security such as two factor authentication to protect their users and how users can use two factor authentication to protect themselves from intruders trying to access their accounts. More emphasis needs to be on training and guiding users to using better security measures online to really make it a safer internet day and many days ahead for all users.

by: Mitchel Smith

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