& Access Security
Securing access is no longer enough: you also need to make sure it works.
Securing access to information systems has become a major challenge for cybersecurity, data protection and regulatory compliance.
Reduce the risk associated with compromised credentials
As cyberattacks and account compromises increase, organizations are progressively strengthening their authentication mechanisms. Among them, multi-factor authentication (MFA) plays a central role.
Security itself becomes a critical digital journey
Adding MFA introduces new steps into the login journey. It therefore becomes necessary to verify that these mechanisms remain available, functional and accessible to users.
More secure authentication that no longer works can become a point of failure for the entire service.
The challenge is therefore not only to deploy new security controls. Organizations must also be able to verify their operation over time and quickly detect anomalies that may prevent legitimate users from accessing applications.
MFA: access security under the CNIL’s scrutiny
Cybersecurity is playing an increasingly important role in CNIL inspections. Recent decisions highlight the importance of implementing security measures proportionate to the risks to which information systems and data are exposed.
Sensitive access can no longer be considered independently of its level of protection.
A recent example concerns Hôpital privé de la Loire, which was sanctioned following a cyberattack that allowed an attacker to access a significant volume of personal and health data.
One of the weaknesses identified was remote access to patient records without a VPN or multi-factor authentication.
Access protection relies on several complementary layers.
Authentication is only one step in the chain. Effectively securing an information system requires combining access control, traceability, monitoring and detection capabilities.
What is multi-factor authentication?
Multi-factor authentication, or MFA, involves using multiple independent factors to verify a user’s identity before allowing them to access an application or system.
The objective is to reduce the risk that stolen credentials alone could allow an attacker to access an application or sensitive data.
MFA secures access. But who verifies that the authentication journey is actually working?
By adding new steps to the login process, MFA transforms the user’s digital journey. Availability of the authentication service, display of the MFA prompt, second-factor validation or redirection to the application: each step can become a point of friction or failure. This is precisely the journey that now needs to be monitored.
& availability
Securing access is one thing. Making sure it works is another.
When an organization deploys MFA, the access journey to an application becomes more complex. Each new security step also introduces a new potential dependency.
Accessing an application is no longer simply about reaching a URL.
For example, a user may have to follow the journey below:
The issue can occur before the user even reaches the application.
A service disruption can originate from multiple components or steps within the authentication journey.
Application operational
The servers are responding, the infrastructure is operational and the application may appear available.
Service inaccessible
An issue with authentication, MFA, SSO or redirection can prevent the user from reaching the service.
“Is my application available?”
The real question becomes: “Can my users actually access it?”
MFA and monitoring: monitoring the entire access journey
The more complex authentication mechanisms become, the more important it becomes to monitor the experience end to end.
Regularly test the journey as a real user would.
With a Synthetic Monitoring solution for the user experience, user journeys can be simulated regularly to verify that the different steps required to access a service are working correctly.
The objective is no longer simply to monitor a URL or server availability.
Check the components
The URL, server, infrastructure or technical availability may all appear operational.
Verify the service actually delivered
Journey simulation helps identify issues that could remain invisible with monitoring focused solely on the infrastructure.
& MFA Monitoring
What Ekara can bring as MFA becomes more widespread
With Ekara, organizations can integrate access and authentication journeys into a comprehensive Digital Experience Monitoring approach.
Integrate authentication mechanisms into broader digital experience monitoring.
The challenge is not simply to know whether an MFA mechanism is responding. It is about understanding whether the user can complete all access steps, reach the expected service and perform the actions required for their work.
From journey monitoring to precise incident identification.
Monitor authentication journeys end to end
With Synthetic Monitoring, teams can simulate critical user journeys to regularly verify that they are working properly.
The objective is not to limit monitoring to the availability of the login page. Monitoring can cover different steps in the journey all the way through to access to the expected service.
Detect an issue before it impacts users at scale
A failure in an authentication mechanism can have a significant impact.
If the same Identity Provider or authentication system is used across multiple applications, a single anomaly can potentially affect multiple services.
Synthetic monitoring makes it possible to regularly execute journeys and quickly identify a failure or degradation.
Measure access journey performance
An authentication journey can work without necessarily delivering a satisfactory experience.
An MFA step that takes too long, a particularly slow redirection or an Identity Provider with deteriorating response times can have a direct impact on the user experience.
Precisely identify the step causing the issue
When a user simply reports “I can’t log in,” diagnosis can be complex.
Is the issue coming from the application? The network? The Identity Provider? SSO? MFA? A redirection?
Detailed journey monitoring provides operational teams with more context to understand where the journey begins to degrade.
Maintain monitoring as security mechanisms evolve
Authentication systems are not static. An organization may decide to deploy MFA, change its Identity Provider, modify its access policies or evolve its SSO.
These changes can have a direct impact on existing monitoring scenarios.
When an MFA mechanism is introduced or modified, existing monitoring scenarios need to be adapted in order to continue reproducing real-world conditions for accessing digital services.
Evolve monitoring journeys using natural language.
Customers who want to evolve their journeys themselves can also use Ekara Studio’s Flow AI capability to integrate these changes from a description written in natural language.
Discover Flow AI →“Adapt my login journey to take the new MFA step into account before access to the application.”
Secure access without losing sight of the experience actually delivered to users.
By integrating authentication mechanisms into monitored journeys, teams can detect failures, measure performance degradation, gain more context during incidents and adapt their monitoring lorsque les dispositifs mechanisms evolve.
& Monitoring
Monitoring as a complement to a security strategy
Ekara is not intended to replace cybersecurity solutions, IAM tools or MFA solutions. Its role is complementary.
Protect access
Cybersecurity, IAM, MFA and access control solutions help strengthen the protection of applications and information systems.
Verify access
Monitoring makes it possible to verify that access remains operational and performant from the user’s perspective.
From security to digital resilience
The widespread adoption of MFA reflects a broader evolution of information systems. Applications are now surrounded by a growing number of services and dependencies.
Enhanced security, visibility maintained
The growing adoption of multi-factor authentication addresses a key need: better protecting information systems against account compromise and unauthorized access.
Each new security layer also becomes a new component of the digital journey.
And anything that becomes critical to access must also become visible in monitoring.
With Ekara, organizations can monitor their digital journeys end to end, identify degradations and maintain visibility into actual access to their applications, including as their authentication mechanisms evolve.
Are you deploying MFA or evolving your authentication mechanisms?
Ekara teams can support you in analyzing the impact of these changes on your monitoring scenarios, adapting the relevant journeys and maintaining continuous monitoring of your critical services.