Joon Hyuk Lee and Atsuhiro Tscuhiya, APAC Market Development Team
[Snapshots of AMF Inauguration Members]
As the world struggles to contain the global pandemic, cybercriminals are launching their attacks and taking advantage of the anxiety and uncertainty that people are feeling. They impersonate trusted authorities or brands to mislead their victims. This is not surprising as cybercriminals are always on the lookout for opportunities and vulnerabilities.
Cybersecurity ranks amongst the top ten global risks, and reducing cyber-risk exposure has become a priority for business leaders, according to the World Economic Forum’s 2020 Global Risks Report.
Meanwhile, cybersecurity and technology experts overwhelmingly agree that reliance on passwords should be reduced if not totally scrapped: 80 percent of all data breaches involve weak or stolen passwords, and 29 percent of all attacks leverage the latter.
The use of passwords poses many challenges. As we increasingly live our lives and perform mission critical work online, safe access to connected devices and online services is more important than ever. The need to raise authentication standards and reduce reliance on passwords is now more urgent than ever.
APAC Marketing Forum
Since 2012, the FIDO Alliance has been working with organizations across Asia Pacific (APAC) to reduce the reliance on passwords and encourage the adoption of simpler and stronger approaches to authentication. Today, we have close to 40 members from both the public and private sector in this region.
Recently, more than 30 representatives from these member organizations got together for the very first FIDO Alliance APAC Marketing Forum (AMF). The AMF, held virtually, was an informal marketing related discussion.
The event provided a platform for members to connect, learn about each other’s markets and share best practices. It facilitated communication and cooperation amongst members, and the authentication industry as a whole.
Recent Initiatives in APAC
FIDO members in APAC also have made tremendous progress in recent months.
Companies that deployed FIDO authentication include PrivyID in Indonesia, and Japan-based NTT Docomo and KDDI. Furthermore, VinCSS became the first company in Vietnam to develop FIDO2-certified strong authentication servers.
FIDO also was included in official standards documents developed by the Taiwan Association of Information and Communication Standards (TAICS) and SEMI (Semiconductor Equipment and Materials International) Taiwan.
Also in Taiwan, the Taiwan-Cathay United Bank has added the FIDO logo to the latest version of its app, which was released to customers in August.
Additionally, we had successful events like the FIDO Security Key Support Campaign, and 2020 FIDO Hackathon – Goodbye Password Challenge that offered member organizations opportunities to interact with each other despite physical distancing.
Activities in the Pipeline
Moving forward, we aim to organize more of both digital and onsite collaborative marketing events where members can promote their innovations and share case studies. Currently, planned initiatives include:
- FIDO Alliance virtual AMFs to be organized once every quarter, where post discussion updates will be shared through the FIDO Blog
- FIDO Alliance quarterly member newsletter
- Updated FIDO Alliance orientation material with contents customized for the needs of APAC members
We look forward to seeing you at the next virtual meeting in October!
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If you wish to take part in these exciting new initiatives, or have any inquiries, please do not hesitate to contact tsuchiya@fidoalliance.org.
By joining AMF, you will not only get to connect with key authentication players in APAC, but also gain benefits of participating in FIDO branded awareness and promotional activities together with global champions.
