Is your company in need of greater security and compliance? Did you know there’s a way to do that while simultaneously boosting your company’s productivity and cutting costs? With SSO solutions you can do all of these things!
Not sure what SSO is, how it works, or why you’d want to invest in it? In this article, we’re covering the background and benefits of SSO. Then you can decide if it’s the right thing for your business.
What is Single Sign-On?
Single sign-on (SSO) is an authentication process that’s much safer and effective than two-factor authentication. It allows a user to access a range of applications at once with just a single set of credentials like a username and password. Companies that use SSO rely on a third party to verify that the users attempting to access these applications is who they say they are.
How Does SSO Work?
When using SSO, the website first checks to see if you’ve been previously authenticated. If you have, you’re granted access to the site, and if you haven’t you’re sent to the SSO screen to log in.
Once you hit the SSO screen, you enter whatever username and password you use for work. From there, the SSO system actually requests authentication from either your company or the system your company uses. After you’ve been authenticated, that verification data travels with you wherever you go so you can be automatically authenticated whenever you hit a new page.
The Benefits of SSO Solutions
Now that you know what SSO is and how it works, you’re probably wondering how it’d benefit your business and security solutions.
SSO Increases Productivity
With SSO, users can access all of their applications through one convenient portal. This means they can spend more time working and less time signing into a bunch of individual applications. Which is important given how many web applications an employee uses on a daily basis.
SSO also minimizes the frustration that comes with having to memorize multiple passwords. SSO makes users less likely to write their passwords down or use poor password practices that put your company’s cybersecurity at risk.
SSO Reduces IT Costs
Employees who have to remember multiple passwords are more likely to lock themselves out of their accounts, which becomes an issue for IT departments. And while resetting a password may be easy, it takes valuable work time from both employees and IT workers. With SSO, employees don’t have to rely on IT to address this problem, which frees up time and energy for everyone.
SSO Improves Security
Many people wrongly assume that SSO weakens your security due to its single password nature. But this isn’t true. That’s because it actually encourages users to create strong passwords, which better protects their account from cybersecurity issues.
The truth is, employees, don’t want to use extremely technical security measures or tools. If they find them time-consuming or taxing, they’ll find workarounds that put your company at risk. SSO removes those kinds of complexity and improves the overall UX, which can help boost adoption.
Ready for a Better Solution?
Whether you’re looking to address security issues or cut back on IT costs, SSO solutions are the way to go. SSO will keep your company data safe while cutting back costs and improving overall work productivity.
Are you looking to improve your company’s authentication efforts? Not sure where to start? Contact us to see how we can help!
