Whether verifying or authenticating, the motivation is similar – identifying the individual conducting the transaction. You want to ensure that the company-client marketing is not hostage to identity theft or imposter fraud. Despite the fundamental similarity, you ought to know there are significant differences between verification and authentication from the cyber security angle, and we’ll explain how such differences play out.
Identity Verification: The Basics Explained
Verification ensures that clients are who they claim to be, and, in support of their identity, various documents and IDs are processed and scrutinized.
Verification is the first precaution the server or system takes at the gateway to any transaction. Verification is a one-off activity, at the entry point, a critical step in establishing trust between the user (customer) and the system (app, website, or retail store).
Passbase KYC identity verification solutions providers contend that verification protects the client and the company by tracing the transaction to the genuine account holder and prevents spammers and hackers from exploiting vulnerabilities.
Identity Authentication: The Fundamentals Explained
Authentication is the process that validates a user-verified transaction by generating a unique user code. Only the right individual has the authority to use the generated code to complete the transaction. The concept of network security importance kicks in, and the system applies multiple checks to block third parties from exploiting any legitimate transaction for unlawful purposes.
The user authentication code could be in the form of a One-Time-Password (OTP) sent to the user’s device or a question that can be answered by the genuine client only. If you don’t respond to the OTP message or do not reply correctly to the queries, the system denies access and shuts you out.
Authentication is an essential component of the online identity validation process. Authentication protects sensitive personal information and data backup, firewalled and protected on the company server.
Verification examines what users possess (IDs, passports, licenses) or know (PIN or answers to archived personal information). Authentication is the deep end of the verification pool where fingerprints, retina scans, or facial features are examined to validate the captured data with the pre-existing database.
The 5 Advanced Authentication Methods That Companies Swear By
The more sophisticated identity authentication solutions use one or more authentication methods for cocooning transactions in more robust security.
Password-Based Authentication
Passwords are the most common authentication method and the weakest because people generally use simple combinations that are easy to guess and prone to phishing attacks.
Multi-Factor Authentication Or MFA
MFA uses two or more different channels to identify the customer independently. For example, access to a site or an app sends an OTP to a smartphone. The smartphone might use a combination of voice biometrics, fingerprints, or facial recognition to authenticate the user. But losing the device could pose problems to the user.
Encrypted Digital Identity
The certificate-based authentication is an intelligent way of validating users. For example, the user’s passport or driver’s license is stored as a digital certificate in the system along with a private key. The server matches the private key with the digital certificate for authentication when the user logs in.
Biometric Authentication
The user’s unique biometric features such as a fingerprint, facial characteristics, voice sample, palm print, or retina scan are stored in the database and authenticated every time a transaction is initiated. Biometrics technology adds the most muscular layer of security, and the methods of data capture are increasing in sophistication.
Token-Based Authentication
It becomes tedious when you have to enter your credentials repeatedly at every stage of the transaction within protected systems. Once you have access permission, the system generates a unique encrypted token (a string of random characters) which is easier to deploy.
Conclusion
Verification and authentication can be treated as two sides of the cybersecurity coin. The primary motive common to both functions is protecting the company and client by ensuring only authorized people handle transactions.
Verification is the initial step at the entry point to a system when users present their documents validating personal identity. Authentication applies more rigorous levels of scrutiny where genuine account holders are required to clear passwords, pathways, and probing questions to stay invested in sensitive transactions.
Companies strive to improve the strength and sophistication of verification and authentication protocols to prevent cybercriminals from infiltrating and compromising systems.
