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Government Cybersecurity:

Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)

At Swivel Secure we understand local government work to tight budgets and we are proud to be able to offer a cost-effective multi-factor authentication (MFA) platform. AuthControl Sentry protects your identity and provides advanced functionality such as single sign-on and risk-based authentication as standard, making AuthControl Sentry cost-effective and therefore an ideal MFA solution for local government.

Can swivel secure provide authentication for the public services network (PSN)?

Yes, Swivel Secure’s AuthControl Sentry® can provide authentication and security for local government employees working across the Public Services Network (PSN). As the PSN provides a means of sharing potentially sensitive public service data, it is essential that it is protected from cyberattacks. Swivel Secure can provide authentication so that those accessing the systems, either from a remote location or from their own offices, are appropriately authenticated using risk-based authentication.

Using risk-based authentication, a standard feature of AuthControl Sentry®, system administrators can set up rules on a points-based system. Certain criteria need to be met to enable users to authenticate including: group membership, IP address, device, last authentication, and what service the user is trying to access.

Can AuthControl Sentry® protect Office 365?

AuthControl Sentry®, the multi-factor authentication platform from Swivel Secure protects a wide range of applications including Office 365. The platform provides two-factor authentication, risk-based authentication, and single sign-on functionality for Outlook, Sharepoint, OneDrive, Word, Excel, Powerpoint and more. AuthControl Sentry® can integrate with both Microsoft ADFS 3 and ADFS 4.

How would authentication work for external third party users, such as school staff?

The local government regularly have a requirement for external users such as school staff to access data. This can be hard to manage and control, but with AuthControl Sentry® third parties can also be managed using risk-based authentication ensuring secure access based on set criteria such as a known IP address. Groups can be set up and mapped to Active Directory groups to simplify user management of the solution.

Can Swivel Secure provide authentication for a virtual desktop infrastructure (VDI)?

Government jobs demand flexibility to log into multiple devices in multiple locations during a single working day. With agile hot-desking, on and off-site meetings, out-of-hours access and remote working a part of many employees’ roles, security is key. Ensuring government staff can access their files from any location whilst protecting them from unauthorized users is a constant challenge on both real and virtualized devices. With personal credentials and a consistent security experience across laptops, smartphones, legacy machines and virtual desktop infrastructure, Swivel Secure makes managing and providing access secure and straightforward.

Can we protect our sensitive social services data without making access for authorised personnel inefficient?

Yes, protecting social services data which is typically sensitive doesn’t have to mean access for authorized personnel becoming a headache every time they want to log in. Using PINSafe® to protect credentials, the user is presented with the PINSafe® image in the web browser, whether accessing an SSL VPN, Cloud application or internal application, meaning there is no additional device needed. Users simply type in the numbers that correspond with their password from the TURing image below. The image and order of the numbers change with each login keeping credentials safe and login simple.

Does AuthControl Sentry® support tokenless authentication?

Yes, authentication methods include: Mobile App, SMS, Email, Hardware Tokens, and Image-based Authenticators (TURing/PINpad®). Hardware tokens are still supported, but most of our customers opt for authenticating using the mobile app, SMS or PINpad. Both short messaging service (SMS) and the mobile app can be used, offering optional authentication methods including a OneTouch PUSH authentication, allowing users to simply accept or reject the authentication.

The mobile app can be provisioned using a self-service portal. Integrated into the active directory, the self-service portal can save on overheads and maintenance costs to local government because it reduces IT support costs In addition to provisioning the mobile app, local government staff can also change or reset their pin, and re-sync hardware tokens if they are being utilized for authentication.

Take a look at our other articles for more tips on how to secure your network
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