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How does IDgo authentication compare to authentication using SMS One-Time Passcodes?

Outlines the security, efficiency and user experience delivered by IDgo authentication compared to the One Time Passcode delivered by SMS method.

For the contact center engagement channel, IDgo replaces risky, inefficient SMS OTP with a secure, device-bound, “tap-to-authenticate” experience that eliminates smishing, reduces time to authenticate, and protects consumers and enterprises from the fraud attacks that SMS OTP enables.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) guidance is clear: OTPs - especially SMS-delivered OTPs—are not sufficiently secure for high-risk scenarios.
  • OTPs are not phishing-resistant (NIST SP 800-63B). Authenticators requiring manual entry (including OTP) “shall not be considered phishing resistant.”
  • For financial services, call centers, and high-risk transactions, NIST advises stronger, device-bound, phishing-resistant authentication methods (like IDgo).
SMS OTP is a prime driver of account takeover (ATO) and impersonation fraud
  • S. ATO fraud losses hit $15.6B in 2024, up from $12.7B in 2023 (Javelin Strategy & Research / AARP). The average loss per ATO incident is ~$12,000 for consumers (U.S. state securities regulator advisory). Every $1 lost to fraud costs financial institutions $4.41 in total impact (LexisNexis, April 2024).
  • Smishing (SMS-based phishing) attacks targeted 76% of businesses last year, with an average organizational loss of more than $9.5 million per successful attack. (Atlantic Union Bank, Sept, 2025).
SMS OTP is slow, cumbersome, and adds friction
  • In contact center workflows, consumers must read codes aloud, providing attackers with a script to follow. Copy/paste or memorization results in failed attempts and restarts, adding time to authentication. Codes can be intercepted, forwarded, or phished.
  • There is no way to distinguish legitimate vs. suspicious calls – OTPs are always issued.
SMS OTP teaches consumers the wrong security behavior
  • When call agents say, “Read me the code you just received,” consumers learn to trust unsolicited texts and to share sensitive tokens. “Read me the code you just received,” trains consumers to be smished.
  • Fraudsters spoof contact center numbers and coach consumers to read codes aloud.
Superior security with IDgo authentication
  • IDgo has no codes, no need to speak any information aloud, no interception or replay risk.
  • IDgo has a verified device key that blocks attack paths that make SMS OTP vulnerable, including SIM Swap & Port-Out risks.
  • IDgo supports adaptive questioning for suspicious calls to protect against man-in-the-middle attacks.
  • IDgo is continuously evolving to address new fraud vectors — an SMS OTP has no extensibility.
Simpler, faster experience with IDgo authentication
  • IDgo has no manual entry of codes, no reading codes aloud, no repeated attempts, no teaching to be smished.
  • IDgo authentication completes in seconds.
  • IDgo authentication results in higher consumer and staff satisfaction.