When it comes to protecting company data, having good password habits is essential. Unfortunately, since the average employee has around 200 passwords, they tend to use easy-to-remember but also easy-to-guess passwords, such as "123456," "qwerty," and "password." Not only that, but many employees also use the same password for multiple online accounts or write down their passwords on sticky notes and leave them on their computers.
These poor password habits leave businesses vulnerable to data theft and other cyberthreats. The good thing is that a password manager can help improve employees' password habits.
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What is a password manager?
A password manager is an application that securely stores passwords in an encrypted vault. It can also be used to store other sensitive information, such as credit card details, personal notes, and addresses. Password managers can also generate strong, unique passwords for all of your accounts.
To access all the stored data in your password manager, you simply need to enter your master password. This means you only have to remember one password instead of memorizing one for each account you have.
Most password managers come with multifactor authentication (MFA) to secure your master password. With MFA enabled, you'll need to fulfill additional authentication requirements besides providing your master password before you can unlock the app. This means cybercriminals won't be able to access your stored login credentials even if they have your master password, reducing the possibility of a successful account takeover attack. Alternatively, you can use a fingerprint scan instead of a master password to unlock the password manager.
Why should businesses use password managers?
Cybersecurity experts highly recommend password managers for many reasons:
Stronger passwords
A password manager can create passwords that are more secure than any password you can come up with. Therefore, cybercriminals will have more difficulty guessing app-generated passwords.
Even if they manage to steal one of your passwords, they won't be able to compromise your other accounts since the password manager generates a unique password for each account. This prevents cybercriminals from successfully launching credential stuffing attacks, wherein they use your compromised password to try to get into your other online accounts.
Most password managers can also assess your business's password health. This feature will alert you of any weak, duplicate, or exposed passwords that are stored in your company account.
Convenience
With a password manager, you no longer have to remember all of your login credentials or write them down. Instead, you can access your passwords by providing your master password or fingerprint scan.
Many password managers can also automatically fill in your login credentials for you, so you can log in to websites and services without having to input your credentials manually. This autofill feature can shield you from phishing websites, as the password will only automatically populate for domains it is associated with inside your password vault. It’s important to note that the autofill feature of password managers is more secure than that of web browsers’.
More secure password sharing
There are times when two or more employees have to share access to an account, such as a department email account. In such cases, you can use the password manager to securely share passwords with other company account users by controlling who has access to certain stored passwords.
When another user is given access to a stored password, they won't be able to view the actual password. However, they'll still be able to access the shared account using the password manager's autofill function.
Interested in implementing password managers and other tools to bolster your company’s security posture? Turn to NetQuest. We offer affordable but effective IT security solutions that can protect your company from cyberthreats. Get in touch with us today.
