A blessing 
for some, a curse 
for others

The growing trend for working from within one’s own four walls has diluted the distinction between private and working life on a lasting basis. It is now almost impossible to draw strict boundaries between private,
public and company access, which has only intensified issues around security of sensitive data and systems. Attack vectors are no longer aimed directly at the infrastructure of the particular company; instead, they focus increasingly on the weakest link – the employee working in their own home.

Remote working means a substantial increase in risks associated with information security, as new points of attack open up. The dangers often lurk in unsecured networks, outdated routers and poorly secured access via a range of devices. In many cases, private networks do not meet the operational standards required for a secure office environment. Numerous companies are faced with the technical challenge of reducing these security risks. No matter where employees are when they access the company’s sensitive data, central systems, and services that need protecting, or what equipment they are using, the home workplace needs to be as secure as the office.

A cyber attack on employees working from home can threaten the entire IT infrastructure of a company and cause considerable damage. Effective and location-independent security solutions have to be put in place, without jeopardizing productivity and business processes. What is needed, therefore, is a holistic approach to data protection and IT security that includes home working, that reduces the increased security risks as far as possible, and that creates a strong yet flexible security basis.

Multi-factor authentication (MFA) for remote working is the most secure solution, because it is the simplest. Even the most complex security infrastructure with firewalls, encryption and virus scanners is only of limited use if access is not secured with a strong factor. It is crucial to implement this secure process for all employees and across all systems, applications and tools. This is the only way to increase the security level sufficiently, prevent bogus login attempts, and create a trustworthy working environment across the board.

With a user-friendly authentication solution that can be combined with a risk-based approach, ti&m makes sure that employees can have secure and straightforward access to all services at any time. Our passwordless solution enables access to the desired services in seconds and, with factors such as fingerprint, facial recognition or PIN, it guarantees an authentication experience that is quick, simple and user-friendly in all aspects. With little effort, our authentication solutions increase the security level for businesses, thereby pro-
tecting against unwanted attacks, even in the era of remote working.

At ti&m, we were quick to recognize that modern-day requirements call for a holistic solution, even in the internal network, that integrates clients and employees securely, seamlessly and simply, wherever they are.
We therefore joined together with Swiss se-curity specialists United Security Providers to develop our SSO/2FA platform – a new, comprehensive security solution for safe-guarding entire company networks.

The company-wide implementation of the SSO/2FA platform enables integration of existing endpoints and, at the same time, is so flexible that future portals and data can also be incorporated into the single sign-on mechanism without difficulty. Access is secured by the ti&m security suite using a strong second factor (2FA). Whether using a smartphone or a special hardware token, access is only granted to those who have both the password and the second factor.

Applying the ti&m security suite in combination with the United Security Providers web access management solution (USP Secure Entry Server^®) offers the perfect protection, both for working in the office and working from home.

The flexible security and authentication solution, melded with customer needs in mind, covers all security requirements – without compromising user-friendliness or sustainability.

Swiss innovation for global application

The SSO/2FA platform has been developed entirely in Switzerland and is designed for multiple, global application. This is a solution that allows for convenient working while providing maximum protection for the entire company network. The example shows how, as a result of a need within a company, by merging openness, innovation and usability – and not forgetting the collaboration between two Swiss security specialists – a new solution has been created, one that offers real added value for the user, and prepares companies for the new way of working, at least as far as security aspects are concerned.