services, today announced the release of PhoneFactor for Managed Service Providers (MSPs) and providers of Hosted Services.

PhoneFactor is a phone-based two-factor system that eliminates the need for expensive tokens, card readers and other devices. It works with any phone (land line or mobile) and can be installed, configured and managed within minutes. With PhoneFactor, there is no concern about token expiration or synchronization; no smartcards to renew; nor any drivers or devices to manage. Most importantly, end users find PhoneFactor easy to use and there is no inventory for loss, breakage, or theft.

“MSPs need solutions that are simple to implement, have a wide range of applications, and provide recurring revenue,” said Klint Borozan, senior vice president of Business Development for Positive Networks. “PhoneFactor solves the cost and customer acceptance issues associated with token-based authentication systems promoting a serious shift in the two-factor authentication market.”

A wide range of MSPs can now capitalize on the strong authentication market. By synchronizing PhoneFactor with a company directory, the MSP has minimal requirements to manage the solution, thus lowering costs. In the case of the mid-tier MSP serving mid-market or SMBs, rapid, low cost deployment of a solution that requires no training is a tremendous advantage.

“This solution should be of particular interest in the financial services industry and other environments that have significant risk from fraud, and need a cost effective and scalable solution,” Borozan added.

Given that PhoneFactor can be downloaded as an agent or loaded as an SDK into most applications, it enables strong authentication for remote access, and protection from internal fraud as well. A simple list of applications includes all VPNs regardless of manufacturer (Cisco, Juniper, Nortel, etc.), Citrix Applications, remote PC access, online banking, web-based transactions, client server operations for ATMs, SaaS providers, SSO environments, social networking, blogs, and anywhere else identity needs to be authenticated.

“We are looking to enable technology integration relationships with Web 2.0 companies that will allow us to further enable MSPs to support web security using a powerful tool such as PhoneFactor,” said Evan Conway, chief identity officer for Positive Networks.

Information Source:    Business Wire