More than a day: long-term password integrity

May the fourth be with… your passwords. World Password Day, celebrated the first Thursday of May, was created to instil good password habits so that digital data remains secure. While celebrated on a single day each year, password best practices shouldn’t be limited to a day. Password integrity is a discipline that should be strived for year-round.

Passwords have become a common way to access and manage our digital lives, both personal and at work. From logging into a computer, accessing critical digital data, sharing large files, paying invoices and more, passwords are a mainstay in business environments today. However, having a password alone is not enough — password integrity is essential.

Think of the foundation of a building. To prevent the building from collapsing, it needs to be built with certain principles in mind. Password integrity involves the same concept. Passwords are the foundation of digital work life. If they aren’t secure or properly managed, businesses run the risk of falling victim to cybercriminals who are eager to access confidential data.

From July to December 2022, data breaches reported to the Office of the Australian Information Commissioner increased by 26% compared to the beginning half of 2022. The ramifications of a data breach can be enough to shut a business down. Beyond the financial impact resulting from fines and downtime, reputational damage can be crushing.

Passwords of course aren’t perfect. While alternative authentication methods, such as biometrics (eg, fingerprint or facial recognition), hardware tokens and behavioural analytics are becoming more common, passwords are still widely used today. Therefore, it is crucial that we remain vigilant and focus on password integrity.

How to develop password integrity

To bolster password effectiveness, passwords should be updated regularly. Many people use the same passwords for an extended period, which increases the risk of exposure or hacking, or short, simple passwords.

Additional recommended best practices to achieve password integrity include:

• Use strong, unique passwords: Create long passwords that include a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers and special characters. Remember — Length is Strength! Using spaces will help with length; consider song lyrics or movie names for easy recall.
• Use a password manager: A password manager can help generate and store strong, unique passwords for each account.
• Update passwords regularly: Change passwords periodically, especially for sensitive accounts like email or online banking.
• Enable multi-factor authentication: When available, use MFA to add an extra layer of protection.
• Be cautious with password recovery questions: Choose questions with answers that are difficult to guess or use false answers that only you know.
• Keep passwords confidential: Never send passwords through email or text messages.
   

Image credit: iStock.com/towfiqu ahamed