Security teams are investing heavily in tools that detect threats earlier, accelerate response and strengthen defenses. But those <a href="https://bitcomme.com/3-australian-investment-managers-benefiting-from-higher-cash-and-bond-yields/” title=”3 Australian Investment Managers Benefiting From Higher Cash And Bond Yields”>investments can leave a critical question unanswered: How secure are the systems controlling access in the first place?
Recent research from my company, rf IDEAS, found that 98% of IT and security leaders are confident their current authentication and security approach adequately protects against unauthorized access. Yet only 24% describe their authentication and access control systems as largely modernized, and more than half (53%) haven’t significantly updated those systems in at least three years.
That disconnect creates a confidence gap. Organizations may consider their security posture proactive while relying on fragmented or aging authentication infrastructure that wasn’t designed for today’s threat environment.
But the gap goes deeper than infrastructure alone. Our research revealed a notable disconnect between executive priorities and operational reality. While 93% of C-suite respondents say authentication modernization is a high priority, only 72% of managers responsible for implementation agree. The closer leaders are to execution, the more visible the complexity becomes. That misalignment can make it harder to prioritize and advance modernization efforts.
Evaluating how authentication functions across your organization can help you uncover weaknesses and determine where your security strategy needs greater attention.
3 ways to close the gap between confidence and readiness
Authentication can span workstations, applications, shared devices and physical spaces, with different credentials and systems governing access at each point. This fragmented environment can make weaknesses harder to identify and lead to inconsistencies in how access is managed across your infrastructure.
Focus on three areas to strengthen authentication:
1. Identify overlooked access points
Before investing in another layer of security technology, map where and how users authenticate across your organization.
Look beyond traditional application logins to shared workstations, printers, operational technology, physical access points and other devices employees use throughout the day.
Pay particular attention to older credentials and systems that may have escaped previous modernization efforts. Our research found that 89% of organizations still use usernames and passwords, while a quarter use proximity cards, a legacy technology that can be vulnerable to cloning.
A comprehensive inventory can reveal where outdated authentication methods persist and where gaps between systems create security risks.
2. Reduce fragmentation in authentication systems
Authentication becomes more difficult to secure when systems operate independently.
Our research found that 73% of respondents said their physical and logical access systems aren’t fully integrated. Meanwhile, 60% said employees typically use two to three different credentials or authentication methods across systems and facilities.
Consolidating authentication gives your security team greater visibility into access while reducing the operational burden of managing separate systems. With fewer disconnected systems to manage, you can apply access policies more consistently across your environment.
That consistency also makes it easier to keep access current as employees join, change roles or leave. More centralized provisioning and deprovisioning can help prevent outdated permissions from remaining active after they should have been removed.
3. Modernize based on your current environment
Build your authentication modernization strategy around where your organization is today, the risks you’re trying to address and the technologies you already have in place.
Involve IT, security, operations and leadership teams early in the planning process to account for different requirements and identify potential implementation challenges.
From there, modernization could mean replacing easily cloned proximity cards with more secure smart cards, introducing mobile credentials or adopting phishing-resistant authentication, depending on your current infrastructure. Prioritize interoperability so your investments can work with existing systems and adapt to new credential technologies over time.
A phased approach can help you address the highest-risk gaps first and continue strengthening authentication as business and security requirements evolve.
Rethink outdated authentication
As security teams balance a growing range of priorities, authentication is easy to overlook. But aging credentials and disconnected access systems can introduce vulnerabilities that require both technical improvements and organizational alignment.
Taking stock of how people access systems, devices and spaces is the first step. From there, you can bring leadership, IT, security and operations teams together to establish clear ownership and move modernization efforts forward. That coordination can help you turn security investments into real progress and close the gap between perceived readiness and actual readiness.
