You’ve probably heard the phrase “practice creates perfect” many times, but when there’s no way to improve, practice becomes monotonous and boring over time.
Multiple logins, repeated access to the same account may feel the same.
Your employees don’t like it when they must keep track of incessant (and often difficult) logins, passwords, and user names in order to access all of the applications or services within the productivity software you use.
Imagine if the IT staff didn’t have to waste valuable resources and effort managing user accounts? What if your team could focus on their core business operations instead of combating “password exhaustion”? There’s a way to accomplish both.
Enter Single Sign-On (SSO).
Single Sign-On: One Login Multiple Accounts
The Single Sign-On?
SSO, also known as one-sign-on is the latest access control system that allows users to sign into the system using a single set of passwords to many distinct but related devices or touchpoints. Any device, no regardless of the location they are.
An SSO service is run using an authenticating token.
If, for instance, you login to a company resource and then the SSO creates the token to remember that you’ve been authenticated.
Any service you attempt to access following that will be confirmed by using the single sign-on. The SSO sends your authentication code to the service and you’re then allowed access. If, for any reason you’re not yet verified you’ll be asked to verify yourself using the single sign-on system.
It happens so quickly that you’ll be unable to notice.
Imagine SSO as an SSO to be an intermediary who will verify whether the user’s password and keyword match those of the central database, but without managing the database itself.
It’s similar to an instance where a liquor store’s manager searches for an item on behalf of someone else by referring to the label of the bottle. The store owner may not have memorized all the liquor catalogs and can get access to any bottle instantly.
In a highly vulnerable ecosystem such as banking or healthcare it is important not to risk documents, data resources, data or anything else. You’ll need central access controls that have complete control over the access rights for users. Single sign-on technology gives you the ability on an elegant silver platter.
Don’t get too bogged down with definitions. Let’s look at the “juicy” aspect: SSO advantages and why you shouldn’t think twice about including it in your arsenal of user management tools. Do we?
Six Key Benefits of Single Sign-On
1. SSO elevates user experience
Have found yourself frustrated because you could not remember your username and password for a specific application? Twice? Thrice? Many times?
SSO provides a much-needed respite in this respect.
Employees (or anyone else) aren’t required to type into logins several times. They also don’t need to wait for password requests to gain access to essential corporate tools. They are a content satisfied, productive, and content group with no reason to rest in their awe.
2. SSO can cut down on time
Humans aren’t machines. While we’d wish to have dozens of login passwords We are wired to forget a handful, or, in certain situations the entire list. Urgh!
Set password. Forget password. Reset password.
It’s a gruelling situation on a personal scale and it’s even more frustrating at the enterprise level when IT teams have a wealth of data to protect and a variety of network resources that need to be accessed as well as a myriad of other important obligations to perform.
It’s an inefficient use on the time (and funds) as the IT team is handling password misuse requests in lieu.
When you implement SSO the users will have access to all of your company’s services from one “portal” and only with one login–not hundreds. The one-click access to the required modules or services provides tangible and lasting benefits for time saving.
For more information on database SSO access click here.
3. Single sign-on speeds up speed when it is needed the most
In high-stake industries like finance and healthcare, or in large enterprises where many departments and employees demand fast-paced and steady access to the same applications/services, SSO can be incredibly useful.
In situations like this, delays in access, misuse of passwords and compromised accessibility to resources or tools could literally make the gap between life or death.
4. SSO assists with compliance with regulations
It’s not a secret that businesses have to comply with numerous regulations such as SOX, HIPAA, and most importantly, PCI DSS (Payment Card Industry Security Standard).
This requires companies to assign unique IDs to employees who have access to devices or resources and to ensure proper verification for external users.
The failure to comply with such an obligation could lead to huge fines and other naysayers consequences, such as losing the trust of customers, partners and even employees. It’s not what you want to happen, would you?
SSO assists you in complying with the rules laid out in the world of everything, ensuring that you have a reliable access report and safe file sharing.
5. Reduces IT Helpdesk costs
Because a single sign-on option minimizes your login options to a minimum one must manage it is unlikely that users issue a password reset request to the IT department.
We’re not going to say it, but the fact is that these ticket requests are quite common.
In reality, Gartner says that 20%-50 percent from all IT helpdesk inquiries are related to credentials. Naturally, the tickets can be costly as well, with Forrester estimates the price for a single password reset to be under $25. This is a risk you’ll want to avoid at all cost and SSO can help you avoid it easily.
6. SSO improves security
Ooh, security. Single login and security are almost unbreakable. If you’re unaware that the entire purpose of the “once-only” password is designed to increase the security of high-level, sensitive corporate resources.
I’ll remind you of this. Remember the information we discussed about authentication tokens? The token is stored within the main SSO servers or databases, and not the actual service that users attempt to access on a daily basis. This only means one thing: the resource is not able to store sensitive login information.
So, in a way the SSO is a central authentication point. This reduces the risk of malware or phishing attacks.