Passwords alone are no longer enough to protect your business accounts. Multi-factor authentication (MFA) adds a second step to the login process, such as a code from an app on your phone, so that a stolen password by itself cannot be used to access your email, files or applications.
How MFA works
When a user signs in, they enter their password as usual and are then asked to confirm their identity through a second factor. This might be a push notification, a one-time code or a physical security key. Because the attacker does not have the second factor, the login attempt fails.
Why it matters for small businesses
Business email compromise is one of the most common and costly attacks we see. In most cases it begins with a phished password. Microsoft reports that MFA blocks the overwhelming majority of automated account attacks, and many cyber insurance carriers now require it as a condition of coverage.
Getting started
Our team configures MFA across Microsoft 365, remote access tools and line-of-business applications as part of our standard security baseline. We also provide short training sessions so your staff understand what to expect and how to recognize suspicious prompts.
MFA is included in all of our managed service plans. If your organization has not yet rolled it out, we encourage you to make it a priority this quarter.