
Password Sharing and its Impact on Enterprise Data Security
One of the extreme threats faced by enterprises in recent times is that of the data breach. Insiders and cybercriminals are keenly aware of the value of data. Many people don’t understand the risk, and they are also unaware of ways to protect their data, especially when it comes to handling passwords at work. Employees easily share their credentials without giving a second thought about the breach of company policy. In a survey conducted by SurveyMonkey among U.S. adults, it was shown that out of 1,507 participants, one third (34percent) of them shared their passwords with their co-workers. Almost 22 percent of the participants admitted that they reuse the same password on multiple work accounts. It is seen that only about 12 percent of the employees use password managers to manage multiple passwords securely.
Check Out: Top Fraud And Breach Protection Companies
Password sharing can significantly weaken the organization’s security, and it is shown that the majority of the hacking related breaches occur due to weak or stolen passwords. Legal issues can arise if the customer’s privacy is violated. A company must establish a strong policy prohibiting password sharing under any circumstances. Due to multiple logins to a single account, it is difficult to trace the user who compromises the data. Some level of control must be established at workstations like limiting concurrent logins and forcing logoffs exceeding the allowed number of times. Multi-factor authentication and use of long passwords must be encouraged. Employees must be nurtured about the benefits of using password managers like LastPass or Dashlane to avoid using the same passwords for multiple services. Use of personal devices must be avoided in workstations to prevent unauthorized users from accessing the network and confidential data.
CIOs must regulate the policies and make sure that users must not be squeezed to work together in a shared account. When the line between work and home fades, employees tend to increase the risk when they share files from personal device to their company device. Every employee of the organization must be educated about the security policy and password sharing by highlighting the risks involved. An organization must monitor, control, and update policies to minimize or completely eradicate password sharing. Prevention of password sharing will reduce external and internal threats, creating a secure work environment.
Check this out: Top Web Security Solution Companies
Featured Vendors
EDITOR'S PICK
Essential Technology Elements Necessary To Enable...
By Leni Kaufman, VP & CIO, Newport News Shipbuilding
Comparative Data Among Physician Peers
By George Evans, CIO, Singing River Health System
Monitoring Technologies Without Human Intervention
By John Kamin, EVP and CIO, Old National Bancorp
Unlocking the Value of Connected Cars
By Elliot Garbus, VP-IoT Solutions Group & GM-Automotive...
Digital Innovation Giving Rise to New Capabilities
By Gregory Morrison, SVP & CIO, Cox Enterprises
Staying Connected to Organizational Priorities is Vital...
By Alberto Ruocco, CIO, American Electric Power
Comprehensible Distribution of Training and Information...
By Sam Lamonica, CIO & VP Information Systems, Rosendin...
The Current Focus is On Comprehensive Solutions
By Sergey Cherkasov, CIO, PhosAgro
Big Data Analytics and Its Impact on the Supply Chain
By Pascal Becotte, MD-Global Supply Chain Practice for the...
Technology's Impact on Field Services
By Stephen Caulfield, Executive Director, Global Field...
Carmax, the Automobile Business with IT at the Core
By Shamim Mohammad, SVP & CIO, CarMax
The CIO's role in rethinking the scope of EPM for...
By Ronald Seymore, Managing Director, Enterprise Performance...
Driving Insurance Agent Productivity with Mobile and Big...
By Brad Bodell, SVP and CIO, CNO Financial Group, Inc.
Transformative Impact On The IT Landscape
By Jim Whitehurst, CEO, Red Hat
Get Ready for an IT Renaissance: Brought to You by Big...
By Clark Golestani, EVP and CIO, Merck
Four Initiatives Driving ECM Innovation
By Scott Craig, Vice President of Product Marketing, Lexmark...
Technology to Leverage and Enable
By Dave Kipe, SVP, Global Operations, Scholastic Inc.
By Meerah Rajavel, CIO, Forcepoint
AI is the New UI-AI + UX + DesignOps
By Amit Bahree, Executive, Global Technology and Innovation,...
Evolving Role of the CIO - Enabling Business Execution...
By Greg Tacchetti, CIO, State Auto Insurance
Read Also
