World Password Month, a celebration of strong passwords
April 6th, 2023
World Password Month, Week 1: Strong passwords – difficult to think of, difficult to crack
Everyone has difficulties with coming up with strong passwords. And with good reason, as we have more and more accounts for both business and personal use, and the requirements for a strong password seem to get stricter and stricter. But these strict requirements are there for a good reason!
Awareways will celebrate World Password Day (May 4th) this year by publishing a weekly nugget of numerical wisdom related to passwords and organizational culture. Welcome to password month.
The Question
Passwords are the access to your email, your digital workplace and all your accounts online and therefore a favorite target of criminals. Which is why we have asked 40.000 people in various organizations (and across several of our ongoing security awareness programs) if they find coming up with passwords difficult.
We have divided them into small-, mid-size and large entities according to the number of employees (<750, 751-2500 and >2.500, respectively). Overall, 47.3 % in small organizations found it difficult, while as much as 61.1% in large organizations admitted to finding it tough as well. Mid-sized organizations were in the middle with 52.1%.
What’s the logic behind these numbers?
…
The Answer
Well, large organizations usually have more apps and infrastructure, and require more authentications, making password management all the more complex.
Employees in small organizations meanwhile are more used to coming up with passwords, because they lack such facilities, and thus have more ‘practice’. Or, if we’re taking a more cynical approach, the requirements for strong passwords haven’t permeated to small organizations. They can come up with easy-to-remember ones, and have less difficulties.
Whatever the reasons, any organization should be aware of the risks of weak passwords, and offer their employees both guidance and help in keeping their credentials safe.
More insights next week! Learn more about our Culture Scan and map your employees’ level of information awareness.
Get in touch!
Want to know more about our vision or approach, or curious about other information? Then feel free to contact us!