Securing Your Customers Online

Most companies go to great lengths to protect their private corporate data. When employees log on to dedicated company networks and applications, they usually are required to authenticate their identity to prove they are indeed who they say they are.

We know that many of the same companies want to apply stronger levels of security to customer-facing websites and mobile apps, but many don’t feel they can because of upfront cost, impact to the user experience, and support concerns. Therefore, they simply ask customers for a user name and password—and that’s it. Customers click a button and they are in, free to manage their bank account, share photos with friends, make a doctor’s appointment, and conduct all sorts of other personal business.

It’s no surprise that companies hesitate to implement stronger security for consumer-facing websites and mobile apps. Historically, consumer authentication solutions have not been easy to integrate and have made interaction more difficult. They interrupt the customer experience. And they tend to be expensive.

Companies have little choice: either strengthen security and lose customers, or keep access easy and take privacy risks. The business choice—and in some cases, the customer demand—is the latter.

However, that choice has led to massive data breaches. The result: damage to some of the largest brands in the world, and a loss of consumer confidence that those brands can effectively and safely manage customer data. The threat of serious data breaches at corporate giants from Apple to Anthem have companies large and small worried, and even customers are starting to reconsider whether the perceived inconvenience of security might be better than the alternative. If only companies and users could get what they both really want, which is for the websites to offer ease of use and tight security.

Fortunately, your company can now offer both strong security and ease of use through Symantec two-factor authorization (2FA) technology.