Be Aware of Potential Issues When Using Single Sign on Authentication

Organizations may take different views, in regards to single sign on authentication processes. There are benefits to using this method, but companies need to be aware of potential issues they might face. For instance, your employees only have to remember a single password and user name. This can help reduce the number of support calls for forgotten user names, passwords and locked accounts. All of the systems they are allowed to access are tied to their single log-on information, and are authenticated in the background whenever resources or connections are made over your network. However, should someone discover another employee’s log-on information, they are able to use it to gain access to data or resources that they otherwise are not authorized to use.

Single Sign On May Be Used with Other Authentication Methods

Some business operations may decide to use a combination of different authentication methods based upon the sensitivity of the data and the type of resource. For instance, they might use single sign on methods for establishing the initial connection from a computer to the network, or for printing to connected network printers. However, they are able to supplement this method with two factor authentication for access network folders, financial applications and related data, securing their employees' personal data and wage information, and other such data where higher security and control is required. When used in this manner, you can decide to have your employees use a different user name and password, with two factor authentication to further increase their security.