World Password day is observed every year on the first Thursday of May as designated by the Registrar of National Day Calendar. World Password Day is an annual reminder to change our passwords. As we move into a more technologically advanced world. Intel first started World Password Day to create awareness for the importance of password security.
The History of World Password Day
After knowing the celebration day of the World Password Day 2022, do you know what the history of World Password is?
The security researcher – Mark Burnet first encouraged people to have a password day where they update important passwords in his book Perfect Passwords, published in 2005. Then Intel Security was inspired by his idea, and declared the first Thursday of May as the World Password Day in 2013. After that, the World Password Day has raised awareness about the need of password security.
The Importance of Creating Strong Passwords
The use of passwords carries security risks, which World Password Day aims to address. One of the most common ways for hackers to gain access to accounts is to use stolen passwords. Phishing is used to target employees and trick them into disclosing their passwords, either via email, phone (vishing), or text message (SMiShing).
Hackers also use brute force tactics to guess weak passwords and take advantage of default credentials that have not been changed. If rate limiting is not implemented to lock accounts after a set number of failed login attempts, weak passwords can be guessed in a fraction of a second. Even strong passwords can be guessed in seconds or minutes if they are not sufficiently long.
Switch to a password manager
Password managers are an easier, safer alternative to remembering passwords. By switching to a strong password manager, you can secure all your passwords in one repository, generate strong, unique passwords for new signups, safely autofill them across websites and apps, and make password sharing safe with real-time auditing. Users can access all passwords saved in their vault using a single master password.
Enable multi-factor authentication
Speaking of passwords, you can make it much harder for cybercriminals by adding a second layer of defence to your online accounts, like shopping, banking and cloud storage accounts.
“Multi-factor authentication” means you need to enter not only a password (or use a “biometrics” solution, such as a fingerprint or facial scan) to assure that only you can access your accounts, but also a one-time code that’s sent to your mobile phone.
In other words, it combines something you know (password) with something you have (smartphone).
Bitwarden says multi-factor authentication has caught on: 79% of U.S. respondents use it for workplace accounts and 77% use it for personal accounts. You can significantly reduce the odds of a cybersecurity issue by adding multi-factor authentication or most or all of your online activity.
The future is going passwordless
One efficient way to overcome password fatigue could be by implementing passwordless authentication using single sign-on (SSO). This is a prevalent technique already in use. Ever use your Google, Facebook, Twitter, or other credentials to sign up with new apps?
Many popular business websites also support SSO, allowing enterprise admins to set up a one-time configuration that grants instant passwordless access for employees. This eliminates password fatigue at work and also improves employee productivity by multiple folds.
Conclusion
To sum up, this post has introduced what the World Password Day is and when World Password Day is. In addition, we also have introduced how to observe it and how to set a strong password.