Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) User Guide
We hope you find this guide useful. If at any point you need assistance, please do not hesitate to contact us on 0333 3209 911
What is MFA?
MFA is a method of proving who you are by relying on two different pieces of information:
Something you know - your password
Something you have - a mobile or access to a phone
By having proof of these two pieces of information before you are allowed in to an IT system makes it very difficult for criminals to pretend to be you. This is very similar to online banking etc.
Why do I need MFA?
There has been an increase in the volume and sophistication of cyber attacks over the last year. This includes numerous attempts to obtain staff usernames and passwords (either by cracking simple passwords or coercing people to divulge their passwords).
Without MFA this makes it very easy for an attacker to access your IT systems as you and view the data you have access to and pose as you (such as sending email to contacts).
As part of our aim to keep you and your organisation safe from criminals we are enabling a Microsoft security feature called “Security Defaults” which will enable MFA on your account.
What will happen?
Once MFA has been enabled for your organisation, the next time you sign in you will be presented a prompt similar to this:
Before proceeding, you will need to have access to:
A mobile phone, or;
A telephone that you will always have access to when you need to sign in to your Microsoft account.
Setting up MFA
The following video will guide you through how to setup your security info for your second authentication method:
If you prefer, the following link takes you to Microsoft’s documentation for setting up security info used by MFA:
Tips & Useful Information
Once you have set up your security information, and selected your preferred second authentication method (e.g. mobile app, SMS text or voice call), this will be prompted for when you log into your Microsoft 365 account from any device.
1
If you get an unexpected prompt to approve a connection, or receive a code, do not approve and contact Zenzero Support immediately. You should only receive a request when you are at sign-in prompt.
2
After setting up MFA, any existing accounts on your mobile devices will stop synchronising (since they would not be authenticated). You may be able to simply go to your account setup on your phone and re-authenticate.
For example on iOS 14.4 this can done from Settings > Mail > Accounts > your work account > Account (this should then prompt for authentication).
If this does not work then you will need to remove the account and add it again to your mobile device. If in doubt – remove the account and add it again.
3
For browser or desktop access, you will be prompted to “remember me” for a default of 90 days. Tick this box – this will mean that you will only need to use your password from that desktop and browser for the next 90 days. If you change browser, or desktop, you will be prompted again (but remember to select the “remember me” tick box again).
4
For mobile phone browser or application access you may not be prompted for the “remember me” option; don’t worry: the default 90 days should be applied.
5
If you connect to your organisation’s network via VPN then you will be prompted for the second authentication every time.
6
You will be prompted on workstations, browsers, mobile devices for MFA after 90 days. For mobile devices will depend on your device and apps; you may get prompt to re-enter your password; or the app may display a message “failed to connect to server”; or a warning symbol (e.g. orange triangle). For accounts added to the device go to the account page which will re-prompt you to re-authenticate. For apps – the app should re-prompt you automatically.