The latest release of the iGaming Security Best Practices by DGE (Division of Gaming Enforcement) demands that online gambling sites protect their patrons’ logins with 2-factor authentication. The online gambling regulatory bodies promoted the use of 2-factor authentication in Nevada, Delaware, and NJ online casinos long before, and starting from January 2022, 2FA became obligatory.
Online gambling sites attract a growing number of users, and since this area is connected with money transfers and still lacks protection against online risks, many hackers focus their actions on cracking the gamblers’ accounts. They use the personal users’ details from the hacked online games accounts for payment and identity fraud, and sometimes even for money laundering.
Multi-factor authentication is one of the most effective online gaming security practices for players. MFA lowers the chance of falling victim to several hacking techniques like credentials stuffing, keyloggers, phishing, bruteforce, social engineering, and more.
How 2-factor authentication in iGaming protects users
The iGaming software provider integrates with the MFA provider and makes it possible to activate two-factor authentication in the user account. Then the gambler activates 2FA. And starting from this moment, the gambler will always have to pass two levels of authentication before entering their online casino profile or when they make any transactions:
- The first auth level is a password, as usual.
- The second level is a temporary passcode that remains active only for thirty seconds. The one-time password can be generated using an application or a special hardware device called an OTP token. An OTP passcode can also be received in a text message or a chatbot in a messaging app.
Therefore, if a hacker steals the password using a keylogger, credentials stuffing, phishing, or any similar attack, they still cannot enter the patron’s account, as it is too hard to get a temporary passcode. Moreover, bearing in mind that the temporary code is active only for a few seconds, even having it, the hacker has to be too quick to use an OTP code to log into the gamer’s account, which is almost impossible.
How online gambling business benefits from MFA
Encouraging gamers to activate 2FA for their online gambling accounts is advantageous for every party:
- Online casino players don’t lose their accounts, confidential details, and assets. The level of credibility towards the iGaming platform grows, it becomes more popular and attracts new players.
- The flow of help center tickets that require an individual approach gets down. As a result, customers are more satisfied, and the cost of maintaining the technical support department reduces.
- The chances to use the iGaming software illegally decrease. It is one of the main goals of DGE and other gambling regulatory bodies.
2-factor authentication integration tips for online gambling sites
To be sure your multi-factor auth performs its function and hackers have no chance to get around it, choose a ready-prepared third-party two-factor authentication solution with all necessary certifications, like OATH (Initiative for Open Authentication) certification, and connect it with your iGaming software.
The iGaming industry regulators make the online casinos add multi-factor auth only to the players’ profiles. Still, it is also vital to secure your business from the inside and enable MFA for the workforce, especially for the employees dealing with confidential information, website administration panels, and personal details of the players. We advise you to do it in one stroke.
To integrate the 2-factor auth into your iGaming platform, you’ll need an API or suitable SDK. As regards workforce security, many MFA providers offer plugins for easy integration with popular operating systems, IT infrastructure software, and email clients. For example, there are integration plugins for Active Directory, Ubuntu, Windows, macOS, Outlook Web App, Roundcube, ADFS, Citrix ADC, VMware, and so on.
Also, try to give your patrons and admins the opportunity to enroll an OTP token that will be convenient for them to use. From a 2FA application on their smartphone, the delivery of temporary passcodes in instant messengers, to hardware OTP tokens – small devices that users will always need to carry with them. Here you will find out what types of tokens for generating one-time passwords are offered today.
So it is possible to identify three points you should take into account when choosing an MFA provider for the iGaming business:
- A 2FA provider must support integration via API or SDK;
- Plugins for quick integration with corporate infrastructure must be available;
- A two-factor authentication service for the iGaming sites must support different OTP tokens to give the patrons several options.
The Protectimus two-factor authentication service fits all these criteria. It will be a good choice for iGaming sites. Protectimus provides an open API and SDK for Java, PHP, and Python; plugins for the mentioned corporate software; a good choice of 2-factor authentication tokens. Though, there are many similar MFA solutions for your consideration.
The latest release of the iGaming Security Best Practices by DGE (Division of Gaming Enforcement) demands that online gambling sites protect their patrons’ logins with 2-factor authentication. The online gambling regulatory bodies promoted the use of 2-factor authentication in Nevada, Delaware, and NJ online casinos long before, and starting from January 2022, 2FA became obligatory.
Online gambling sites attract a growing number of users, and since this area is connected with money transfers and still lacks protection against online risks, many hackers focus their actions on cracking the gamblers’ accounts. They use the personal users’ details from the hacked online games accounts for payment and identity fraud, and sometimes even for money laundering.
Multi-factor authentication is one of the most effective online gaming security practices for players. MFA lowers the chance of falling victim to several hacking techniques like credentials stuffing, keyloggers, phishing, bruteforce, social engineering, and more.
How 2-factor authentication in iGaming protects usersThe iGaming software provider integrates with the MFA provider and makes it possible to activate two-factor authentication in the user account. Then the gambler activates 2FA. And starting from this moment, the gambler will always have to pass two levels of authentication before entering their online casino profile or when they make any transactions:
- The first auth level is a password, as usual.
- The second level is a temporary passcode that remains active only for thirty seconds. The one-time password can be generated using an application or a special hardware device called an OTP token. An OTP passcode can also be received in a text message or a chatbot in a messaging app.
Therefore, if a hacker steals the password using a keylogger, credentials stuffing, phishing, or any similar attack, they still cannot enter the patron’s account, as it is too hard to get a temporary passcode. Moreover, bearing in mind that the temporary code is active only for a few seconds, even having it, the hacker has to be too quick to use an OTP code to log into the gamer’s account, which is almost impossible.
Encouraging gamers to activate 2FA for their online gambling accounts is advantageous for every party:
- Online casino players don’t lose their accounts, confidential details, and assets. The level of credibility towards the iGaming platform grows, it becomes more popular and attracts new players.
- The flow of help center tickets that require an individual approach gets down. As a result, customers are more satisfied, and the cost of maintaining the technical support department reduces.
- The chances to use the iGaming software illegally decrease. It is one of the main goals of DGE and other gambling regulatory bodies.
To be sure your multi-factor auth performs its function and hackers have no chance to get around it, choose a ready-prepared third-party two-factor authentication solution with all necessary certifications, like OATH (Initiative for Open Authentication) certification, and connect it with your iGaming software.
The iGaming industry regulators make the online casinos add multi-factor auth only to the players’ profiles. Still, it is also vital to secure your business from the inside and enable MFA for the workforce, especially for the employees dealing with confidential information, website administration panels, and personal details of the players. We advise you to do it in one stroke.
To integrate the 2-factor auth into your iGaming platform, you’ll need an API or suitable SDK. As regards workforce security, many MFA providers offer plugins for easy integration with popular operating systems, IT infrastructure software, and email clients. For example, there are integration plugins for Active Directory, Ubuntu, Windows, macOS, Outlook Web App, Roundcube, ADFS, Citrix ADC, VMware, and so on.
Also, try to give your patrons and admins the opportunity to enroll an OTP token that will be convenient for them to use. From a 2FA application on their smartphone, the delivery of temporary passcodes in instant messengers, to hardware OTP tokens – small devices that users will always need to carry with them. Here you will find out what types of tokens for generating one-time passwords are offered today.
So it is possible to identify three points you should take into account when choosing an MFA provider for the iGaming business:
- A 2FA provider must support integration via API or SDK;
- Plugins for quick integration with corporate infrastructure must be available;
- A two-factor authentication service for the iGaming sites must support different OTP tokens to give the patrons several options.
The Protectimus two-factor authentication service fits all these criteria. It will be a good choice for iGaming sites. Protectimus provides an open API and SDK for Java, PHP, and Python; plugins for the mentioned corporate software; a good choice of 2-factor authentication tokens. Though, there are many similar MFA solutions for your consideration.
