Mobile authentication specialist Encap Security today launched Hybrid Authentication App, the world’s first banking-grade authentication app capable of securing mobile web applications without the need for context switching or one-time passwords (OTPs).

Unlike native apps, downloaded from an app store, web apps run in a browser and work with any smart device. Mobile web apps are becoming the preferred choice for many developers because they work across multiple operating systems, and updates can be made without the user having to install new software. However, web apps can currently only be secured by a simple password, or by two-factor authentication methods that offer a poor user experience, such as OTPs delivered by key fob or SMS.

Encap Security’s Hybrid Authentication App solves this, and allows organisations to deliver responsive, universally accessible and secure applications using the mobile web. The Hybrid App is a ‘thin’ native app with Encap’s Smarter Authentication™ and a mobile web browser that ‘wraps around’ the web app. This approach offers a unique experience whereby users can be authenticated to the web app without switching to another app or using another piece of hardware or software to receive an OTP.

Users will download the organisation’s app from an app store such as the Apple Store or Google Play. Once the device is paired, the user will be asked to identify who they are using Encap’s Smarter Authentication™. Once authenticated, the user will have full access to the web app using the built-in browser. The organisation and its customers or users now have the benefits of in-app security within a mobile web app.

Encap Security’s banking-grade multi-factor authentication, already available as an SDK or a stand-alone native app, turns any personal mobile device into a security credential. This removes the need for inferior SMS codes and hardware such as tokens and SIM-cards. Encap makes the step from username and password to multi-factor security, convenient and hassle-free.

“The mobile web is clearly the future for many applications,” said Thomas Bostrøm Jørgensen, CEO, Encap Security. “It sidesteps many of the issues around fragmentation and can dramatically cut development costs and time. But until now, making sure these web apps were accessed securely meant inconvenience for the customer and more expense for the developer.

“By deploying Encap Security’s Hybrid Authentication App enterprises and financial services providers can dedicate their time to developing a mobile web app that is universally accessible and responsive – and know that users will not be put off by awkward authentication methods.”