SmartAuth is coming April 10

As of Tuesday, April 10, 2018, SmartAuth is protecting your personal information in the Web Information System for Employees (WISE).

SmartAuth is a multi-factor authentication service provided to University System of New Hampshire (USNH) - Granite State College, Keene State College, Plymouth State University, University of New Hampshire, and the System Office for all staff, faculty, and students. It protects your account even if your password is stolen. You may already use multi-factor authentication for electronic banking, email, or social media accounts.

SmartAuth provides an additional layer of protection for your digital identity, and also protects USNH data, systems, and services. The first layer is the verification of your username and password.  When you access a service protected by SmartAuth, the second layer is a passcode delivered to a phone or mobile device.

Why do we need SmartAuth?

Cybercriminals are clever. They want your information and they are continually working on new ways to steal it. Phishing and identity theft crimes increased in the higher education sector over the last few years and protecting your personal information and the University system’s private data is a top priority. 

The threat of personal identity and system data theft is the primary reason USNH chose WISE as the first service to receive multi-factor protection, as it contains your personal information and banking information.

SmartAuth is currently optional for all USNH employees but will be required starting July 9, 2018.  It will be rolled out to other services containing sensitive information in the future.

How do I use SmartAuth?

To start, register at least one phone number at which to receive passcodes and enable the service for your account. We recommend registering more than one phone number and/or devices so you have a back-up if your phone is lost, stolen, broken or otherwise unavailable.

Instructions for Registering a Phone Number for SmartAuth

After entering your username and password, you will be prompted to select from one of your registered phones/devices to receive a passcode.  You can receive passcodes in a number of ways:

• Voice - SmartAuth will automate a phone call to your registered phone and relay your passcode.
• SMS/Text - SmartAuth will generate a text to your registered device with the passcode. 
• Authenticate app - Installing the SecureAuth Authenticate app on your IOS or Android device will give you two ways to authenticate: you can enter the passcode in your Authenticate app or you can choose "Send login request" and a request will be pushed to your Authenticate app.  Once you approve the request, you will be admitted into the system.

A primary benefit of using the Authenticate app is that it does not require cellular or wifi service to generate a passcode.  As such, if you work in an area where cellular service is unreliable, we recommend you register using the Authenticate app.

More Information

• Instructions for Registering A Phone Number for SmartAuth
• Instructions for logging into an application or service protected by SmartAuth
• Instructions for registering the Authenticate app on an IOS or Android device