Happy World Password Day

It is the first Thursday of May and we celebrate world password day. Today passwords are an integral part of our daily life so it is important to build better password habits. These code combinations can be strange, complex, easy to remember, and even easier to forget.

It is not a surprise that we have a special day dedicated to these crypto-keys as we use them to secure our privacy. Strong passwords are the basis of great cybersecurity. World Password Day reminds us of the importance of our passwords as we use them every day to access web or mobile applications to manage our lives. Including online banking, health records, university paperwork, private pictures, or even just emails.  Unfortunately, the Internet is not just about benefits and opportunities, but also challenges and threats. Hackers and identity thieves are everywhere and our passwords serve as the first digital line of defense.

With remote work on the rise, the cybersecurity issue reaches another level, so make sure all your teams are using strong passwords for the business accounts they access.

History of the World Password Day

Passwords existed long before the Internet emerged. Along with coding messages, they played a major role in espionage and secret societies. Using passwords, known just by a few was the only way to ensure the secrets of your organization or activity will remain secret. 

Today digital protection is essential for both our private and professional lives. Here comes one of the big problems as there are so many accounts and profiles that need to be protected. And different platforms have separate requirements for passwords – some accept figures, letters, and symbols while others leave it up to you to decide the code combination. So having a universal password is not an option, let alone it is a terrible idea as well.

World Password Day spreads the awareness that taking care of your password is very important and should be considered seriously. Data is like the currency of the modern age. If malicious hackers access your account details they will cause you a lot of harm. Steal your identity, steal your money, and hijack your virtual life. And even worse they can completely cover their tracks so you or the authorities cannot trace them back.

Why is World Password Day really important?

You may think that in 2021 we have advanced a lot in the field of cybersecurity and data protection. Yet, according to the survey published on PCmag.com top 3 of the most common passwords in 2020 are: 

• 123456
• 123456789
• picture1

Next in the line is the word “password” with some number variations, as well as “qwerty” or “abc1”. As you can imagine these passwords leave users highly vulnerable to online threats. According to a survey conducted by Business Insider, 98% of 10 000 researched accounts use the same password to access all accounts of the user. This is a very dangerous practice as once hackers crash your password they gain immediate access to all your important information. Cybercriminals are also aware of that statistics and that is the reason for their increasing success in recent years.

Having all that said the organizers of World Password Day are trying to educate users on how to create strong, reliable, and hard-to-crack passwords. They also want to promote the idea of two-factor authentication. This is a concept to use two forms of security when you log into your account. Usually, it combines using your standard password and then sending an alert to your phone to confirm whether you are really trying to log in. If an intruder is trying to access your account, you can reject the confirmation and change your password.

Password manager and SSO – keep your business accounts safe

When it comes to business security and passwords there are two popular approaches – Password vault and SSO. Password vault or Password manager is a program that stores your passwords in encrypted format as well as in a secure location (yes unfortunately your devices are not secure enough). To access your original password you need to log in first to this password vault with a single username and password. Once you complete this the program provides you with the password information you need.

Private users often use pass managers that are built into their operational systems, companies prefer to rely on paid password vaults as they ensure a higher level of security and data protection. Some of them can even generate one-time passwords (OTP) which are long, complex, and unique code combinations for every single website.

SSO stands for single sign-on and it is a secure solution that requires your employees to remember only one set of credentials. They can access all your company’s websites and apps with a single username and password. SSO is considered more secure and easy to use compared to password managers. Among the top benefits of the SSO are:

• it eliminates the need for workers to keep many passwords
• it reduces the frequency of logins
• it also reduces the number of credentials stored

Another advantage of the SSO systems is that they work with tokens. After employees log in they receive tokens for the programs, apps, or websites they try to access. Many SSO solutions ensure seamless and secure access across all corporate networks as they work across both on-premises and on-cloud applications.

If you believe you need to do more about your business security, contact our IT service!

The golden rules of secure passwords

• Create a strong password – with letters, numbers, symbols – and no logic in it
• Don’t store passwords on your computer or phone
• Turn on two-factor authentication for the platforms you use daily
• Update  your password every 6 months
• Log off when you’re done with a program
• Store your passwords in a password manager

The digital world is constantly changing. The idea of cybersecurity is evolving as well. Today we are already talking about including biometrics as a source of identification. With innovations like quantum computers and artificial intelligence, there will be new options and new challenges in front of our personal and business security. However, for now, you should build strong and complex passwords that can protect your accounts from hackers and identity thefts.

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