Five Most Common Security Attacks on Two-Factor Authentication

Following some high-profile password hacks, companies like Apple, Twitter and Evernote have moved to shore up their systems with two-factor authentication. Said to be a great missing security link in many password-driven systems, two-factor authentication technologies that are most widely used today are actually fraught with many of the same risks as password-driven systems.

If you’re considering two-factor authentication, you should consider some of the most common attacks, identified by Jim Fenton, CSO at digital identity provider OneID, on two-factor authentication. Of course, there are many more than five attacks in the world, but these should give a starting point for evaluating others. These examples illustrate the importance of thinking broadly about how two-factor authentication can be defeated. You can be assured that the attackers are doing so.