VENDORiQ: Austrian Government Uses YubiKey Support to its Digital Identification System

Why It’s Important

YubiKeys’ versatility across different devices, including desktops, laptops, and mobile devices, combined with ease of use, makes it a convenient and user-friendly security solution to safer user authentication. By generating unique cryptographic codes for each authentication attempt, it is difficult to be easily replicated or intercepted by attackers. Even if a user unknowingly enters their credentials on a phishing site, the YubiKey authentication would fail, preventing unauthorised access.

Supporting YubiKeys from a government standpoint will dramatically improve the cyber stance of Austria and better earn the trust of its citizens. Similarly, this will influence other national governments to support passwordless authentication, reducing the likelihood of successful brute-force attacks or credential-based breaches.

Who’s Impacted

• CISO
• Security teams 
• IT teams

What’s Next?

• Enterprises that adopt YubiKeys must be aware that users must ensure they have their YubiKey with them whenever they need to access their accounts or systems. If the YubiKey is lost, damaged, or forgotten, it can result in temporary lockouts or difficulties accessing the protected resources. Immediate support must be provided, such as asking users to visit the site where they used the YubiKey to change the account settings and reporting the lost YubiKey.

Related IBRS Advisory

1. Securing Password-Managed Authentication

2. Can Password Managers Still Be Trusted?