Okta to boost security for its authentication service

The company also announced that basic two-factor authentication now comes standard for every Okta user, setting a new baseline for strong identity protection, and released new adaptive security features to protect customers from the impacts of credential theft and account takeover attacks.

Okta Single Sign-On includes a one-time passcode strong authentication for all users, making two-factor authentication now the standard for everyone that uses Okta. In addition, the company is rolling out a compromised password detection feature, which will prevent Okta customers from using common passwords and passwords exposed as part of publicly known data breaches. For instances where more robust security is required, Okta AMFA provides a set of authentication factors and a policy framework that supports contextual access management and adaptive, risk-based authentication.

The Okta Identity Cloud closely monitors access behaviours to determine the potential threat actor using compromised credentials to gain access to sensitive company information. With this intelligence, organizations using Okta AMFA can detect anomalies based on the user’s location and client, such as OS and browser user agent. Organisations with AMFA can also use Okta’s device capabilities to determine whether an authentication event is coming from a trusted/untrusted device.