A small company has a website that provides online customer support. The company requires an account
recovery process so that customers who forget their passwords can regain access.
Which of the following is the BEST approach to implement this process?
A.
Replace passwords with hardware tokens which provide two-factor authentication to the online
customer support site.
B.
Require the customer to physically come into the company’s main office so that the customer can be
authenticated prior to their password being reset.
C.
Web-based form that identifies customer by another mechanism and then emails the customer their
forgotten password.
D.
Web-based form that identifies customer by another mechanism, sets a temporary password and
forces a password change upon first login.
Explanation:
People tend to forget their passwords, thus you should have a password recovery system for them that
will not increase risk exposure. Setting a temporary password will restrict the time that the password is
valid and thus decrease risk; and in addition forcing the customer to change it upon first login will make
the password more secure for the customer.
Incorrect Answers:
A: Two-factor authentication is a security process in which the user provides two means of identification,
one of which is typically a physical token, such as a card, and the other of which is typically something
memorized, such as a security code. But in this case the problem stems from a forgotten password.
B: Requiring customers to physically come in to the company’s main office is not a viable option – what if
the customer is on a different continent?
C: Emailing customers their forgotten password is risky as the email can be intercepted, a forgotten
password is best being eliminated from the system as a forgotten password if still active can compromise
your business as well as your customers.Dulaney, Emmett and Chuck Eastton, CompTIA Security+ Study Guide, 6th Edition, Sybex, Indianapolis,
2014, pp. 139, 142