Mobile office

Most corporate networks today are reasonably secure, but the growth of teleworking and the increasing need of traveling employees to access their corporate networks on the road presents a significant security risk. Furthermore, business continuity plans often call for teleworking in case of natural disaster or widespread illness.

Clearly, in such applications access to the network must be protected with strong authentication. However, the local PC usually contains sensitive files as well; users often keep local copies for faster processing or offline work. Loss or theft of a laptop can result in a very expensive data breach, even if the data is never used. As a result, strong authentication is also necessary for PC access.

Protect corporate data, wherever it is

Biometric authentication is an ideal solution to the problem, because it ensures that only authorized users can access the device or the network. To gain access, the user simply looks at the screen and says a pass phrase. Biometric data is captured and compared with the template captured and securely stored at registration; based on the result access is granted or denied.

In the case of network access, a digitally signed copy of the newly acquired biometric data is sent to the server for verification, ensuring the integrity of the authentication process.

While the user is logged in, the system can continue to monitor user presence. If the user leaves the area the PC is automatically locked, and unlocks upon the user’s return, providing easy protection with no user action required. Instead of or in addition to a password or other authentication technology, this solution offers strong protection of the device and any networks and applications accessed through it.

For ultimate security, BioID recommends pairing biometric authentication with encryption of all data on the device. The biometric authentication then doubles as an encryption key. BioID offers a package including built-in encryption and password management.