Blog

In today’s blog we highlight some of the latest key statistics when it comes to data breaches – and why minimising the risk of your organisation becoming a victim is ever more critical. This month one of our partners, ForgeRock, has released its annual Consumer Identity Breach Report – and something that particularly resonates is how personally identifiable information (PII) absolutely takes the lead when it comes to the most targeted data type.…

Here, our resident and highly regarded cryptographer, Dr Michael Scott, reflects on the initial introduction of secure verification on the internet - and considers the challenges it still faces when competing with user experience. When the internet was first invented, security wasn’t high on anyone’s agenda. The application itself was far more exciting and ground-breaking, and security could wait. It apparently came as something of a surprise when email was first abused by spam.…

This month a statement from the FCA read: “In the exceptional circumstances of the Covid crisis, we are giving the industry an additional 6 months to implement strong customer authentication (SCA) for e-commerce. This will minimise potential disruption to consumers and merchants. The new timeline of 14 September 2021 replaces the 14 March 2021 date. Firms are required to take all necessary steps to comply with the revised detailed phased implementation plan and critical path to avoid the risk of enforcement action.…

Over the past few weeks our Chief Crypto Officer, the highly respected Dr Michael Scott, has highlighted the benefits of the MIRACL Trust® authentication. No need for passwords, no storing of credentials and friction free to use. MIRACL also offers a leading open source cryptographic library available in 7 computer languages. Today, Michael reminds us of this capability and the exceptionally high standards it operates under. MIRACL Core is an open source cryptographic library, quite like no other.…

Last week the National Cyber Security Centre (NCSC) released details of their latest advice to individuals and organisations as part of their Cyber Aware campaign – timed to support the increased use of remote working and simply ‘living’ online. It was also an opportunity to go back to basics and remind organisations and individuals how we should all be operating to minimise risk. https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/cyberaware/home Point 4 of the advice focuses on the use of 2 factor or multi-factor authentication.…

Earlier in the month our Chief Crypto Officer, Dr Michael Scott, shared his thoughts on the Trust Me model. Today he highlights an example where this works and considers its draw backs. Passwords are past their sell by date, we know that, but what is the alternative. Don’t be fooled into using personal data as your password replacement. It won’t end well. Many authentication companies have sought to promote their solution as passwordless.…

As the Covid-19 pandemic continues, the technological revolution only accelerates as workplaces across the globe go digital and the importance of online security increases in parallel. Whether it’s protecting email accounts or company data on your laptop – how we protect our data couldn’t be more critical as we find ourselves living in a digital lock-down world. As face-to-face meetings are replaced by virtual conferences, Zoom is one app that has helped to revolutionise the way we ensure ‘business as usual’.…

Last month our Crypto chief, Doctor Michael Scott, compared FIDO to our MFA, zero knowledge proof verification system: MIRACL Trust, culminating in the publication of a new white paper - https://miracl.com/blog/fido-a-noble-attempt-but-alternatives-required/ - Today, in part one of a two part series, he challenges the ‘Trust-me’ concept and highlights it’s dangers and the vulnerability it brings to the user. Authentication is quite a crowded space with multiple Username/Password replacement proposals out there.…

MIRACL BRINGS POWERFUL ZERO KNOWLEDGE PROOF AUTHENTICATION OFFERING TO THE FORGEROCK IDENTITY PLAFROM WITH NEW PARTNERSHIP MIRACL today announces that they have partnered with ForgeRock, the leading provider in digital identity, to bring MIRACL’s Zero Knowledge Proof authentication technology to the ForgeRock Identity Platform. Supporting ForgeRock’s drive to transform the way organisations approach identity and access management, this strategic alliance will provide platform users the opportunity to access MIRACL Trust ® solutions via a pre-built integration.…

MIRACL has become a member of the Open Identity Exchange – OIX - to further its position as an influential provider of simply secure authentication within online identity processes. Launching with a successful presentation to members last week, the MIRACL membership will provide the association and its members with valuable insight into the future of multi-factor authentication with zero knowledge proof. CCO at MIRACL, Michael Tanaka, who presented to OIX members, comments: “Having worked with Experian for a number years it was inspiring to find out about the positive influence OIX has on the authentication industry.…

FIDO is an authentication technology based on the mathematics of public key cryptography that emerged in the 1970s and the 1980s. It is promoted by a large industry backed consortium as the two-factor successor to the username/password mechanism, which is well understood as being no longer fit for purpose. But intrinsic to FIDO is the requirement for both client-side secure hardware and a vulnerable server-side credentials database. Here we propose a better solution which would ditch both of these requirements by separating the registration and authentication processes, and which provides true multi-factor authentication using more modern ideas that have emerged from cryptographic research.…

If passwords are becoming redundant, what’s the solution? FIDO is an alternative approach, but comes with limitations. Using pairing-based cryptography to allow smart flexibility in the ‘secrets’ needed to enable authentication, MIRACL Trust ID takes security one step further. In the final blog of this three part series, MIRACL’s leading crypto expert, Dr Michael Scott, explains how this MIRACL technology works and why it’s the future. FIDO is a well-established industry solution to client authentication.…