2023 SC Awards Finalists: Best Authentication Technology

Beyond Identity, a trailblazer in Zero Trust Authentication (ZTA), has developed an innovative solution that integrates continuous risk-based multi-factor authentication with leading security platforms. This groundbreaking approach effectively combats phishing and eliminates passwords, addressing vulnerabilities in traditional MFA systems that have seen Fortune 100 companies, including Cisco and Samsung, fall prey to cyberattacks. Its robust solution relies on universal passkeys, a standard endorsed by the U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency, and offers continuous risk-based authentication by assessing device security posture and user behavior. Beyond Identity’s cloud-native, SaaS-based solution also provides exceptional availability and cost efficiency. Its Secure Workforce and Secure Customer solutions, deployed on AWS, are designed to enhance internal system protection and user experience respectively. Despite being the most advanced authentication product in the market, Beyond Identity maintains competitive pricing to promote widespread adoption.

Cisco Duo, a part of the Cisco Secure portfolio, promises to help organizations enhance identity security while improving user productivity. Duo offers strong user authentication, device verification, and granular access policies to protect every application, user, and device, both managed and unmanaged.

Duo’s risk-based authentication evaluates context, such as location and device posture, dynamically adjusting authentication requirements based on risk level. This approach minimizes user friction while maintaining security. Duo supports various strong authentication options, including FIDO2-based phishing-resistant methods and passwordless authentication.

Deploying rapidly and integrating with existing enterprise IT infrastructures, Duo helps organizations consolidate access management needs, reduce helpdesk costs, and simplify the user experience. Customers typically see a 159% return on investment, along with lower overall costs. Cisco Duo follows an agile development cycle, ensuring that customers are always protected against the latest vulnerabilities with automatic bi-weekly updates.

CyberArk Identity Adaptive Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is an AI-powered solution designed to help businesses strengthen security and reduce the risk associated with compromised credentials. Offering context-aware authentication across various enterprise identities and resources, this adaptive MFA solution uses behavioral analytics to streamline or ramp up authentication challenges based on real-time insights, striking a balance between protection and user experience.

Supporting a wide range of use cases, CyberArk Identity Adaptive MFA integrates with the CyberArk User Behavior Analytics Engine, leveraging AI and machine learning to develop user profiles and detect anomalies in behavior. It allows businesses to enforce risk-based authentication for stronger security controls, considering contextual information about the user, device, and access request.

As a part of the CyberArk Identity Security Platform, the solution offers unparalleled protection, visibility, and control of all identities through a single, consolidated dashboard. CyberArk’s SaaS pricing model allows for scalability and flexibility, making it an ideal solution for organizations seeking to bolster security while minimizing the impact on users.

RSA’s DS100 cloud-managed multi-functional hardware authenticator has been designed to tackle the password problem by offering both one-time password (OTP) and passwordless FIDO2 authentication in a single device. The product caters to organizations requiring multiple authentication use cases and those transitioning from OTP to passwordless authentication.

The DS100 offers several advantages including cloud-based device management, streamlined assignment and reassignment, and a long product life of 7-9 years with updatable firmware. As one of the only authenticators that offers both OTP and FIDO2 capabilities, the DS100 has been deployed as a part of ID Plus, RSA’s next-gen cloud and hybrid identity platform, which addresses scalability, updates, and configuration management concerns.

The platform offers flexible licensing and self-service options to help organizations meet or surpass budgetary expectations. The dual capabilities, dynamic seeding, and cloud management of the DS100 promise a sound return on investment. RSA’s IAM solution has an installed base of 10,000 organizations, managing 59 million enterprise identities and securing access for millions of users.

Yubico has rolled out the YubiKey 5C NFC, a new security key that features dual USB-C and NFC connections. This product offers a secure, passwordless login experience across a range of modern devices and platforms, such as iOS, Android, Windows, macOS, and Linux. The YubiKey 5C NFC also offers phishing-resistant multi-factor authentication (MFA) with a simple touch or tap on NFC-enabled devices.

Supporting FIDO2/WebAuthn and FIDO U2F, the YubiKey 5C NFC works across various applications without sharing information between services. It operates without batteries, drivers, or software, and offers portability for users to switch devices or log into shared workstations. YubiKeys are designed to store authentication secrets securely, with no internet connection required, making them immune to malware and phishing attacks.

The YubiKey 5C NFC retails for $55 per unit, with no additional costs for software or licenses. A recent Forrester Consulting study found that YubiKey adoption led to a 75% reduction in password-related help desk tickets and a 203% ROI over three years.