MobileIron launches zero trust platform

Introduces zero sign-on technology to eliminate passwords.

Monday, 13th May 2019 Posted 5 years ago in by Phil Alsop

MobileIron introduces the industry’s first mobile-centric, zero trust security platform. MobileIron's mobile-centric strategy allows for continuous enforcement and protection of data, both on the device and on the network, with comprehensive correlation between the critical signals for zero trust: user, device, apps, networks, and threats. This makes the world’s most ubiquitous product – the mobile device – your ID and secure access to the enterprise. This platform goes beyond identity management and gateway approaches by utilizing a more comprehensive set of attributes before granting access.

With mobile devices as your ID, organizations replace the password with a secure and frictionless alternative, ushering in a new era of user authentication. MobileIron is introducing a revolutionary zero sign-on experience built on the company’s leading unified endpoint management (UEM) platform and powered by the MobileIron Access solution.

Zero sign-on completely eliminates passwords as the method for user authentication, replacing [or replacing methods (or whatever the right word is) such as] single sign-on, which still requires at least one username and password. MobileIron paved the way for a zero sign-on enterprise with its Access product in 2017, which enabled zero sign-on to cloud services on managed devices. Today’s announcement extends this capability, making passwordless access to cloud services available from any device, managed or unmanaged, using the mobile device as the user’s secure ID.

“Mobile is the center of our universe, both personally and professionally. With that comes a need for a mobile-centric enterprise-grade security solution,” said Simon Biddiscombe, CEO, Mobileiron. “We are delivering that solution – making the mobile device your ID and access to the enterprise. And we didn’t stop there. We are eliminating passwords for any device, whether managed or unmanaged, because we think single sign-on is one sign-on too many.”

Zero sign-on solves three problems inherent in passwords. As Principal Forrester Research analyst Andras Cser explains: “First, passwords represent a security risk because they can be easily hacked, and password reuse can start an avalanche of breaches. Second, password-related reset costs generate significant operational support costs. Third, password authentication is often the source of a bad user experience, especially in mobile environments” (Forrester: Understand The State Of Identity And Access Management, 2018 To 2019). Zero sign-on eliminates the pain and expense of traditional user credentials, replacing it with a seamless, secure authentication alternative.

A passwordless enterprise has been an unfulfilled promise for years. In fact, according to an April 2019 IDG survey of security decision makers, 86% would do away with passwords if they could. The same survey found that nearly 9 out of 10 security leaders believe that, in the near future, mobile devices will serve as the digital ID to access enterprise services and data.