Abloy UK was responding to the news that the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) has approved a new standard – WebAuthn – that authenticates users in web-based applications using a physical credential other than a password, such as a gesture, biometric reading or a key.
WebAuthn has been hailed as a “big step toward a password-free future.” Most major browsers have already incorporated support for the standard, which uses the credential management API extension to add a physical layer of security.
Abloy UK says it has long advocated supplementing passwords with physical keys.
Although passwords have become more complex and harder to duplicate, they may not be good enough alone.” Pip Courcoux, Abloy UK
“In many ways, security against cyber-attacks is similar to security against physical attack,” said Pip Courcoux, sales and product manager for CLIQ Systems at Abloy UK. “For example, a stolen password is a stolen credential, a phishing attack is similar to wireless credential cloning.
“If you can get close enough to the individual and get enough data you can fill in the gaps and recreate the identity. Although passwords have become more complex and harder to duplicate, they may just not be good enough alone.”
Abloy provides a locking solution that adheres to these principles. Based on detainer disc cylinders and electronic identification, PROTEC2 CLIQ offers flexible key and access rights management, together with complete audit trails via a web-based management system.
PROTEC2 CLIQ can be combined with the CLIQ microelectronics platform to form an additional layer of security and flexibility through advanced encryption and time-based access principles.
“As the big tech companies continue to develop artificial intelligence and quantum computer chips, the digital world will face new threats, so passwords and encryptions could be broken in milliseconds,” added Courcoux.
“But when electronic security fails, Abloy customers will sleep soundly knowing they are ahead of the curve, having chosen a balanced approach to their security where mechanical and digital work in harmony.”
