# Authentication Securing Methods for Mobile Identity: Issues, Solutions and Challenges
###### Abstract  
Smartphone devices have become an essential part of our daily activities for performing various essential applications containing very confidential information. For this reason, the security of the device and the transactions is required to ensure that the transactions are performed legally. Most regular mobile users' authentication methods used are passwords and short messages. However, numerous security vulnerabilities are inherent in various authentication schemes. Fingerprint identification and face recognition technology sparked a massive wave of adoption a few years back. The international mobile equipment identity (IMEI) and identity-based public key cryptography (ID-based PKC) have also become widely used options. More complex methods have been introduced, such as the management flow that combines transaction key creation, encryption, and decryption in processing users' personal information and biometric features. There is also a combination of multiple user-based authentications, such as user's trip routes initialization with the coordinates of home and office to set template trajectories and stay points for authentication. Therefore, this research aimed to identify the issues with the available authentication methods and the best authentication solution while overcoming the challenges. mobile; mobile identity; authentication; mobile authentication; mobile security; authentication method; mobile payment 202214821  
a study on finding the best method of guarding the confidentiality of transactions, integrity of the information, and the availability of the services for mobile identity. Additionally, because information security solutions impose more safety standards on identity authentication, professionals consider increased security during the design process of identity authentication, oblivious to the operation's simplicity [7]. With the fast growth of network edge devices, current cloud computing frameworks find it increasingly challenging to meet network bandwidth and real-time needs as they transmit large amounts of data to cloud data centers [8]. While the technological prerequisites for secure mobile payment have been satisfied, there are no standards or standardized regulations that exist. User authentication flow management is still in its infancy in mobile payment [9]. These are among the challenges we need to look at for establishing a trusted and solid mobile identity. This is a more critical issue than addressing accessibility alone, and security is a primary concern. The SIM card, which is encrypted and integrated into each mobile device, is undoubtedly the most secure method of storing identifying information [10]. Based on our survey of telecommunication companies, mobile authentication involves many parties that can be grouped into three entities: the operator, the aggregator, and the merchant. The operator is the mobile network service provider, the aggregator is the entity that connects between operators and merchants, and the merchant is the mobile application provider. All parties have their own secure authentication method. Making it more complex will enhance security but will delay the transaction speed. Moreover, if authentication is breached within one of the parties, it is hard to trace the source due to the involvement of different organizations. Additionally, synchronizing the mobile authentication method into one single platform will ease authentication security and threat management. Thus, the contributions of this study are threefold, summarized as follows. * First, we have conducted a comprehensive review of the existing common mobile identity authentication issues based on recent research papers. * Second, this study highlights the vulnerabilities of 4G and 5G authentication and the necessity for it to evolve consistently.