A new report analysing the evolution of digital access control has found that digital and mobile solutions are becoming the norm.
The 2025 edition of ASSA ABLOY’s Wireless Access Control Report reveals a maturing market where digital and mobile solutions have overtaken wired-only deployments among those who manage access digitally. Over 12 years of tracking, surveying and analysing digital access trends, the Report has documented strong momentum behind wireless adoption, sustainability, and cloud services. Future focus turns to intelligent integrations and to demonstrating ROI to cement access control’s role in a new generation of smart, secure, and energy-efficient buildings.
“We are happy to share our biennial market research into the digitalisation of access, which is steadily becoming a wireless-first technology,” says Richard Sharp, VP & head of product unit wireless locks, DAS at ASSA ABLOY Opening Solutions EMEIA. “Once again, we hope this report is useful for security strategy and keeps non-specialist decision-makers up to date with what’s happening in digital access– and more importantly, what’s ahead.”
Key issues: sustainability, mobile, cyber–physical resilience and more
For many respondents to the survey commissioned for the report, sustainability has gone beyond ‘merely’ a consideration: for 27% of respondents, it is now the top factor when considering an investment to extend access management reach or capability. “Across multiple and diverse sectors, sustainability is moving from a supporting role to a strategic driver,” says Richard Sharp. “Wireless systems, which reduce the need for cabling and complex infrastructure, are often seen as an ‘energy-efficient’ alternative.”
The previous edition of the biennial Report found significant knowledge gaps between physical and cyber security professionals. Presented with four important regional laws and directives which are (or soon will be) critical to cyber and physical security, 55% of survey respondents did not recognize any. “The situation has improved two years on, although the new Report does identify some remaining issues,” says Richard Sharp.
The vast majority of 2025 survey respondents (84%) felt their organization was either already compliant, or in the process of ensuring compliance, or that these regulations were not relevant to their situation. “With NIS2 coming into force and obligations under the EU’s Cyber Resilience Act fast approaching, this remains an area where customers and manufacturers must continue close cooperation,” he adds.
Adoption of mobile credentials – and mobile access management in general – has boomed, as widely forecasted. The 2025 survey indicates just over a quarter of respondent organizations are making plans for a future mobile deployment (26% in 2025 versus 39% of respondents in 2023). Fully mobile credential environments now account for 17% of all deployments – more than triple the rate seen in the last edition of ASSA ABLOY’s report, in 2023.
“Early adopters have already transitioned: mobile digital access is for the now, not just something for the future,” says Richard Sharp. “These organizations are already experiencing the operational agility, convenience, security and sustainability benefits of mobile access. Mobile digital access is embedded.”
The Wireless Access Control Report 2025 also includes data and exclusive expert analysis on cloud/ACaaS solutions, the rise of biometrics, and more. To download a free copy, visit https://bit.ly/41QhMvB
