soft token


Traditionally, a security token has been a hardware device that produces a new, secure and individual PIN for each use and displays it on a built-in LCD display. The system may activate after the user presses a button or enters an initial PIN. Security tokens are generally used in environments with higher security requirements as part of a multifactor authentication system. While the hardware-based systems are more secure, they are also costly and difficult to deploy on a large scale, as is required for online banking, for example.

Soft tokens are an attempt to replicate the security advantages of multifactor authentication, while simplifying distribution and lowering costs.  A smartphone soft token app performs the same task as a hardware-based security token. Like a hardware token, a smartphone provides an easy-to-protect and easy-to-remember location for secure login information: on the device itself. Unlike a hardware token, smartphones are connected devices, which make them inherently less secure. The extent of their security largely depends on the device’s operating system and client software.

This was last updated in December 2014

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