Passwords. Everyone who uses a computer or networked device for business or personal reasons uses them. They are a simple way to prove you’re you and authorized to access the service, join the conversation, or complete the transaction. The trouble is, we’ve got too many to remember. The human brain is not wired to recall multiple random strings of characters and symbols. And certainly not when each unique password is associated with just one of the dozens of services, accounts, and applications we use all the time.
Did you know…
- 80% of breaches are related to weak passwords1
- 60% of small businesses that experience a breach go out of business within 6 months
- 58% of malware attack victims are small businesses
- A 2022 Verizon data breach survey found 44% of respondents admitted to reusing passwords across personal and work-related accounts
- Small businesses are three times more likely to be attacked by cyber-criminals compared to large businesses4, believing small businesses have fewer defenses and less technically savvy employees
It’s an inconvenience to forget your Netflix, Amazon, or Facebook password. But that won’t impact employee productivity like losing your Google OneDrive, Microsoft Teams, Slack, or network login credentials, or put the entire company at risk by exposing vital bank account and credit card information.
So, we write them down (strike one), store them on our phones (strike two), or – yikes – save them in our web browsers (strike three). Or even worse, we reuse the same generic credential or PIN across multiple logins (like a birthdate, 1234, or the word Password) to relieve the stress of having to remember multiple passwords. None of these methods are secure and all result in weak passwords that are easily hacked, stolen, or lost and inevitably lead to data breaches. All are perfect examples of why businesses need password management.
Further, today’s work environment has changed. Gone are the days of coming into the office with everything an employee needs to get their 9 to 5 job done neatly stacked on the desk. Nowadays employees login to systems and services from remote locations using various devices at all hours of the day and night. Team members come and go. Employees and freelancers may be working on multiple projects or for multiple clients and need to access different cloud-based resources. If one team member changes a password or has their credentials to a shared resource corrupted, all are affected.
The Benefits of Password Management
Can’t remember your password? That’s a good thing – if you have a strong password management solution behind you. If you can’t recall it then it will be nearly impossible for a hacker to break it.
Small businesses need a strong password management solution to protect, organize, and share credentials, to encrypt them in case of cyberattack, and to easily manage changing access privileges for employees to digital resources and services as needed. But most small business owners are stretched too thin, don’t have the IT skills to handle the task, can’t be responsible for resetting every employee’s forgotten password, or some combination of the above. What they need is a solution like Passpack to deliver these password management benefits:
- Enables consistent password policy enforcement. Set rules for creating and updating passwords across the entire business and all users. Every account has a unique random password, no more reusing credentials across multiple services.
- Supports automated password generation. Left to their own habits, employees will not create strong passwords. A password generator constructs long, strong, and unpredictable random character strings for passwords that are difficult if not impossible to break.
- Supports secure password sharing. Stop exposing passwords in text messages, emails, or Post-it notes. Share passwords and digital records among team members effortlessly and securely with encryption. Trusted users are automatically notified of any updates.
- Increases employee productivity. Eliminate hours searching for lost passwords or restoring credentials, speed up employee access to needed systems and services, and minimize the time spent by management and help desk resources resetting passwords.
- Supports remote collaboration. Allow remote team members to securely access a service or shared data resource from anywhere, any time.
- Minimizes attack surface and exposure to cyber threats. Features like single sign-on and two-factor authentication reduce the risk of hackers gaining access to digital services or enticing employees to reveal their credentials through phishing attacks.
- Organizes credentials. Store bank account, utility, mortgage, and credit card data for sharing with discreet teams of trusted individuals who can securely access the data.
- Promotes easy on- and off-boarding. Instantly give a new employee or contractor access to all necessary password-protected services, and then be able to revoke access immediately upon completion of the project or termination of the employee.
Passpack eliminates the need to remember or notate passwords while delivering a suite of tools designed to improve small businesses’ security profiles and enhance overall productivity.
At Passpack, our mission is to provide an unmatched combination of password security and value. Visit us at www.passpack.com and try our service risk-free for 14 days. You have nothing to lose but your password management headaches.
Sources & Acknowledgements:
- Infosecurity Group, 6/2022
- Cybercrime Magazine, 1/2019
- PropertyCasulty360.com, 9/2021
- BBC News