Case Study: Swansea University achieves secure, scalable access to sensitive research data with Yubico YubiKey

Swansea University secures access to world-class database

Swansea University’s medical school, which manages the Secure Anonymised Information Linkage (SAIL) Databank, needed to protect highly sensitive health research data and prevent potential breaches that could damage reputation and trust. A security review concluded that strong two‑factor authentication was required to ensure only authorized researchers could access the databank remotely.

The university deployed YubiKey (Standard and NEO) as a mandatory second factor for VMware Horizon sessions using Yubico OTP and OpenRADIUS, with rollout to users in under two days. The keys worked out of the box on Windows, macOS and Linux, reduced support and integration costs by avoiding drivers or specialist software, delivered fast, reliable authentication that users accepted, and were subsequently adopted across other research platforms.

Swansea University

Simon Thompson

Systems Architect