MFA: Past Updates | IT Services | Seneca Students

What is Multifactor Authentication (MFA)?

Multifactor authentication provides a second layer of defence during the authentication process for various services at Seneca.  In addition to using your email address and password to log into these secure services, a second factor of authentication is required so that if your password becomes compromised, the intruder will not be able to log in.   

Seneca is now utilizing Microsoft Authenticator as the second factor.  You will need to provide your Seneca credentials, and you will additionally need to use Microsoft Authenticator app on your mobile phone or tablet/iPad to approve the login.

What is Microsoft Authenticator?

The Microsoft Authenticator app is free and provides the required functionality to approve your MFA logins.  You will have to install this app on your mobile phone in order for MFA logins to be approved for the secured services.  For example, when you log in to Seneca's Office365 email, your phone or tablet/iPad will show a notification prompting you to accept or deny or enter a code during the login attempt.

Important: It is highly recommended to have the Microsoft Authenticator app installed on your phone to avoid delays.

MFA protected services

Seneca has added MFA protection to the following service:

• Blackboard (Mon. Jan. 24, 2022)
• Student VPN (Mon. Jan. 31, 2022)
• Seneca Office365 (Mon. Feb. 7, 2022)

To use the above service, you will be required to use Microsoft Authenticator to approve your logins.  For instructions on using Microsoft Authenticator with this service, please review the appropriate page below.

• Using Microsoft Authenticator to log into Blackboard 
• Using Microsoft Authenticator to log into VPN 
• Using Microsoft Authenticator to log into Office 365 

Modern Authentication

Microsoft requires the use of Modern authentication, a more secure, up-to-date method of accessing Office 365 services. You may have been using Modern authentication already; any applications currently prompts for Microsoft Authenticator such as Outlook 2016/2019 and Outlook via a browser will continue to work.

To further enhance security and protect the College from ongoing online attacks, threats, and account compromise and meet the Microsoft requirement, basic authentication is disabled.

Some of the mail applications/services affected:

• Outlook 2013 without registry changes
• Outlook 2010 or earlier
• Thunderbird
• macOS mail on macOS 10.13 or earlier
• iOS mail with iOS 10 or earlier
• Android mail clients not supporting OAuth 2.0
• ActiveSync, IMAP4 and POP3 mail clients

For mobile devices, we recommend installing Microsoft Outlook for Android or Microsoft Outlook for iOS, which fully supports Modern authentication. Please ensure to update your mail applications to the latest version to avoid any interruptions. To determine your Outlook version, please visit here.