As the conversation around mobile app security evolves, is identity verification doomed to become another buzzword, or can it truly protect our digital future?

The Mobile App Security Industry Has a Problem

If you’re reading this, odds are you work with mobile applications in some capacity. You either develop security solutions for clients or manage fraud prevention in-house. You present security best practices, set verification strategies, and help colleagues or customers protect their digital assets.

Why Should Mobile App Developers Care About Strong Identity Verification?

To understand the industry’s current challenges, we need to trace the trajectory of traditional security measures, from their basic beginnings to current degradation (yes, another think piece about why passwords aren’t enough).

One of the most effective ways to combat emerging threats is identity verification, which has evolved into a critical layer of security beyond just passwords. Strong identity verification measures, such as biometric authentication and multi-factor authentication (MFA), offer a defense against increasingly sophisticated fraud attempts. When implemented correctly, they help businesses secure user accounts without creating unnecessary friction.

Security’s Basic Beginnings

Simple passwords are often credited as the first line of digital defense—buying companies time before more sophisticated solutions emerged. As mobile adoption took off, so did fraud attempts (roughly billions in losses reported annually).

Early security measures were initially just basic gatekeepers—checking credentials at login and hoping for the best. But pioneers became the first to not only check passwords but also offer management, verification, development, and protection of digital identities on behalf of their clients. Identity verification, in particular, played a crucial role in reducing unauthorized access and fraud, giving businesses and users greater confidence in digital transactions.

Security’s Rapid Evolution

The industry grew from basic passwords to the sophisticated world of biometric verification dramatized by sci-fi movies. Media romanticizes high-tech security as evidenced by facial recognition and fingerprint scans. These aren’t perfect solutions by any means, but they sure made security look cutting edge! Young, ambitious developers flocked to mobile app security, growing the industry to larger heights. As the security world grew, a cottage industry of compliance frameworks, certifications, “Best Of” security lists, and “Who’s Who of Cybersecurity” articles emerged as well. Security companies became enamored with their own innovations.

And for some, flashy security features trumped quantifiable, measurable results and ROI. Meta publications about security sprouted up everywhere. Security companies were now competing for the attention of their peers instead of focusing on actual customer protection. This self-congratulatory culture came at the expense of their clients and slowly started eroding user trust. What’s more, while security companies were picking up innovation awards and increasing their rates, they didn’t see the biometric revolution coming.

Security’s Current Challenges

Modern fraud has democratized how security must be approached and measured. Today, one person with the right tools can create, package, and execute sophisticated attacks without massive resources. New threats like deepfakes don’t require fancy tech to be devastating. Terms like “Zero Trust” ring truer when security and verification aren’t overengineered and artificially complex.

The value of traditional measures was gradually undermined by sophisticated fraud techniques and data breaches. If security companies can’t measure their actual value to clients, clients start looking elsewhere or bringing security in-house.

With limited access to emerging threats, evolving compliance requirements, and user behavior patterns, security companies still struggle to fully measure the effectiveness of their work. And with clients unwilling to share sensitive data, they’re starting to take security (and innovation) in-house.

So What’s Identity Verification’s Problem?

Identity verification’s issue is similar to that of the traditional security industry, but on an accelerated timeline. Security experts have become infatuated with their own verification genius. We’ve created a cottage industry of meta-security: security experts writing about security so other security experts can read it. Rinse. Repeat.

And while we’re getting high on our own supply, we’re ignoring our customers’ actual needs.

The “Aha!” Moment? When We Listened to Our Customers

But we also talk to a lot of our customers. And the truth is this: Our customers don’t read these sites, and I imagine yours don’t, either. Our customers typically have a need, search for that need, find us, and inquire.

That’s the problem with the security cottage industry of experts. We’re telling people who already know about security about… well, security.

Customers Don’t Care About Awards

The realization hit me hard when I considered entering our company for one notable website’s security innovation awards… only to find out that one entry costs hundreds of dollars.

Let’s say we did enter. And we won. Does our customer care? Does our customer even know we entered and/or won?

No. Our customer is busy—swamped, in fact. They don’t have time to read security industry websites or even acknowledge some award we won (much less hear about it). They’re small business owners. Or entrepreneurs. Or they’re in the IT department up against a deadline.

Back to Priorities

I don’t think traditional security measures are dying. But I do believe that the traditional verification model is dying. Nimble, flexible solutions are starting to specialize and adapt to evolving threats.

If you’re a security professional reading this, consider the demise of the password model and stay vigilant. Don’t lose sight of the customer or get caught flat-footed when the next big threat comes along. Because it will come along. The question is, are your priorities aligned with the priorities of your customers?

nandbox App Builder 

With nandbox App Builder, businesses can make safe, feature-packed mobile apps without having to know a lot about coding. Identity verification and mobile app security are now two of the most important parts of online safety. nandbox includes strong authentication features that help app makers keep user data safe without any problems. Many times, obsolete security techniques are applied by conventional platforms for app development. Conversely, nandbox ensures that apps developed on its platform can leverage contemporary methods of user verification, such biometric security and multi-factor authentication (MFA). Companies require safe, flexible, changeable mobile solutions with lifetime adaptation. By prioritizing user safety above everything else, nandbox App Builder satisfies these needs without complicating matters.