‘Generation Z’ is ready to ditch passwords in favour of biometrics, according to research recently released from Visa. The message here is that people in their 20’s want strong security that is easy to use.
Silvio Kutic, CEO of SMS-based security expert Infobip, explains why companies need to sit up and listen to the preferences of their consumers and the considerations involved in taking the biometric plunge.
“Enterprises are constantly striving to create efficient verification systems that prevent hackers accessing sensitive personal data. This is with good reason, as we’ve seen a host of security breaches in the past year, raising fresh concerns over privacy. However, new research by Visa suggests consumers are keen to shun passwords entirely in favour of biometrics as an easy and secure way to keep their data safe. This sends a clear message to enterprises that whilst new and improved methods of security are important to ensure personal data remains safe, they must be moulded around the needs of their customers.
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“Biometric solutions are of course one option, but they are not currently so easy to implement, especially for internet players with a large, international user base. The key message from ‘Generation Z’ is that they want simple and reliable security. So, even though biometrics are at the forefront of technology and are perceived to be immune from security breaches, this may not always be the case. If hackers develop ways to bypass biometric security, and this is all that stands between them and a wealth of personal data, then the solution is no better than existing passwords. There’s a growing need for multiple layers of security.
“Although biometrics may have inherent security benefits and be more user friendly than remembering multiple passwords, one layer of security is never enough. Multi-factor authentication such as SMS-based 2FA can add a much needed extra level without impacting user experience. It requires no more than a mobile phone of any type or generation to add this extra layer of security through global SMS connectivity to deliver one-time PINs.”
By Silvio Kutic, founder and CEO, Infobip
About Infobip
Silvio Kutic, founder and CEO of Infobip, earned a M.Sc. at the University of Zagreb Faculty of Electrical Engineering and Computing. Silvio took over as CEO in 2006. Since then, he has been the driving force behind Infobip’s rapid growth and the strategic shift towards enterprise and MNO solutions.
The opinions expressed in this post belong to the individual contributors and do not necessarily reflect the views of Information Security Buzz.