If you are designing an authentication system today:
Authentication is the first and most critical decision point in security. It is a balancing act: strong enough to resist determined attackers, yet frictionless enough that users don't subvert it. The trajectory is clear: passwords as the primary factor are ending. The future belongs to —passkeys and WebAuthn—augmented by risk-based continuous checks. authentication
But technology alone cannot solve the human factor. The most sophisticated MFA is useless if a user approves a push for a login they didn't request, or if a support desk resets a password over the phone without verification. Authentication is a sociotechnical system. Build for resilience, test against real attacks, and always assume that the gatekeeper will be tested. If you are designing an authentication system today: