Happy World Password Day! If you didn’t already know, World Password Day is celebrated on the first Thursday of each year. Of course, this day serves as an excellent reminder to practice good password hygiene.
Interestingly, World Password Day was first celebrated in 2013 by Intel Security. However, it did not start with them. They got the idea from Mark Burnett in his 2005 book Perfect Passwords. Since then, the Registrar at National Day Calendar has designated the first Thursday in May as World Password Day.
Trading Convenience for Security
Amazingly, even those who have been hacked continue to make the same mistakes because it’s too inconvenient to change passwords. As an example, 53% use the same password at work and for home use.
Of course, using the same password is a big concern because workers do not have the same level of cybersecurity protection at home as they do in the office. Therefore, an exposed password on a home device can mean real trouble for the companies’ network.
Educate Your End-Users on World Password Day
There is no better time than World Password Day to take control and train your employees on good password hygiene. More importantly, please give them the tools to manage their passwords effectively. Some examples include:
- Use Unique Passwords– A unique password includes a combination of uppercase letters, lowercase letters, symbols, and numbers. Of course, the longer the password, the better. Most experts suggest 16 characters or more.
- Don’t Use Google Chrome– Unfortunately, every hacker knows to go to Chrome://settings/passwords to access all your saved passwords. Therefore, if they can gain access through another back door, they can use Google Chrome to access all your accounts. Consequently, it is risky business to store your passwords this way. Not to mention the access they have to your stored credit card information in Chrome!
- Implement Two Factor Authentication– Two sign-ins are better than one. Accordingly, two-factor authentication includes dual passwords or one password and a unique question. Either way, it is harder for botnets and individual hackers to exploit.
- Provide a Password Vault– Most experts will suggest a different password for each site. Obviously, it would be impossible to remember multiple passwords with multiple characters. Therefore, this is highly unrealistic without a way to manage the passwords. For this reason, you should consider investing in a password vault. Additionally, this will also give you access to the company-related passwords if the employee leaves or gets terminated.
- Force Change– A good rule of thumb is to force a password change every three months. Indeed, this sounds painful, but if you have a good password vault, it shouldn’t make much of a difference.
Summary
We hope this article on World Password Day will help serve as a reminder to practice good password hygiene. Please know, INSI is always here if you ever need cybersecurity help or advice. We have sixteen managed cybersecurity offerings that span across everything from risk assessments to 24/7 monitoring and response.
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About the Author
Deborah Frazier is the author of IT Outsourcing Secrets – A Small Business Guide to Compare IT Support Companies. With nearly 20-years’ experience consulting small and medium-sized businesses on their IT support needs, she brings a wealth of knowledge to INSI as Head of Marketing and Sales. If you like this article and would like to get notified when a new article is posted, click here.
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