The strongest aspects of this product were its support, functionality and ease of use. It is the first product of its kind that combines two-factor authentication with intelligence-driven, risk-based authentication. It uses Big Data analytics to increase identity assurance by building rich user profiles based on device and behavioral characteristics. It is even able to detect and permit "normal" behaviors and at the same time challenge or block anomalous activity to provide secure access control that exceeds standalone multifactor authentication methods.
When first working with the tool, one is sent to a link to register and a confirmation is sent to the user's company email address. After the registration process, users are given the most current updates and documentation. This consisted of multiple PDF files for installation and implementation guides. These were detailed, easy to follow and even included diagrams and screen shots of configurations as examples. The entire setup was completed in around 10 minutes.
The product can be used in an enterprise environment and uses a physical token or a memorized PIN. It has centralized management, logging and reporting and has a self-password or equivalent reset. We tested each and the product passed with flying colors. The minimum system requirements are to have one virtual processor and 8 GB of memory for the .ova virtual appliance.
The support team was friendly and timely in all of their responses, as well as being able to answer all of our questions. The company offers 24/7 assistance which includes phone, email, web, chat, knowledge base, FAQ list, upgrades and case management. The only issue with the support is that users pay $3 to $5 per user per year, and the price for the product as a whole is $46 per user.
Resources pages on the company website can answer practically any questions that a user might have about what this product can do. Version 8.0 even offers multiple noticeable upgrades from version 7.0. Most noticeable is the new centralized dashboard and the way the tool can work with VMware ESX and ESXi virtualization. At the same time, it keeps the main function, which is two-factor authentication.
The tokens are compatible with BlackBerry, Nokia, iOS, Windows Phone and Android. The authenticators even include vendor solutions from Microsoft, Cisco, Juniper, F5, Apple, Citrix and more. The manager is meant to be deployed into an enterprise environment, where users can select the authentication method that works best for their particular application.
As well, the Authentication Manager enables customers to pass audits or port this information to their SIEM or security event correlater. The logging includes all aspects of the user's attempted login: username, PIN, agent, time of authentication, correct username, correct PIN and correct/incorrect token code. This enables organizations to pass audits, as well as log anomalous security events. The report engine is even capable of generating 26 different reports.
The product as a whole is top-notch and would definitely fulfill a company's need for authentication. However, implementation comes at a premium price.
Rebecca Weaver contributed to this review.
