So you think hackers have stolen your password? You're not the only one. 
Perhaps you've noticed strange activity on your email account or frequent pop-ups on your computer. Perhaps it's just a hunch. 
But how can you know&nbsp;for sure?
There are many warning signs that you've been the victim of a data hack:
<ul>
<li>Your device is slower than normal.</li>
<li>You use more data than normal.</li>
<li>Videos take longer to load.</li>
<li>You received an email notification about a password change you didn't make.</li>
<li>An online account no longer accepts your password.</li>
</ul>
However, hackers can steal your passwords and identity&nbsp;without you ever knowing. That's why it's so difficult to tell if you're the victim of a hack.
This guide will help you work out if hackers have stolen your information and tell you how to stop it from happening again.&nbsp;
Prevent hackers from stealing your data by incorporating TeamPassword into your tech stack. This password manager for teams comes with a range of security features like two-step verification and password encryption.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up for a free trial</a>&nbsp;today.&nbsp;

<h2>Have I Been Hacked? How Do I Know?</h2>
There are various ways to tell whether hackers have access to your information:
<ul>
<li>Look for unusual activity on your account. This activity includes logins to your social media accounts from unfamiliar locations or mass messages sent from your email account.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look for security emails from account providers that warn about failed login attempts or password changes you didn't make.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look for changes in performance on the devices, apps, and websites you use. For example, see if videos take longer to buffer than normal.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look at your browser's password manager (if you use one) and check that nobody has changed these credentials.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
All the above can be a guessing game. You might have a feeling that you're the victim of a hack but don't know for sure. 
Checking a stolen password list like "Have I Been Pwned" clears up some of the confusion. This tool searches across multiple data breaches &mdash; when hackers take stolen passwords and usernames and post them online &mdash; to see if cybercriminals have compromised your personal information. 
Here's how to use this stolen password list:
<ol>
<li>Enter your email address on the main page.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Click "pwned."</li>
<li>The website will search thousands of databases to see if hackers have stolen your personal information.</li>
<li>If you receive the "Oh no &ndash; Pwned!" message, it means hackers have posted sensitive information associated with your email address (passwords, addresses, phone numbers, etc.) somewhere online.</li>
<li>If you receive the "Good news &ndash; no pwnage found!" message, it means the website could not find your information on the internet.&nbsp;</li>
</ol>
Note: Just because the website can't find your data on the internet, it doesn't mean hackers haven't compromised your personal information.
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-for-small-businesses" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Password Manager for Small Businesses</a>

<h2>Which Passwords Did Hackers Steal?</h2>
Establish which passwords hackers stole in a data breach so you can take quick action. Websites like "Have I Been Pwned"&nbsp;won't&nbsp;tell you which passwords are at risk. You'll only learn whether hackers have compromised the data associated with a particular email address. 
Note: Sometimes, hackers might have access to your email address and other personal information but not your password. It's hard to know for sure.&nbsp;
If hackers have access to your data, it's a good idea to change&nbsp;all passwords&nbsp;associated with the compromised email address. If you use your email address for several online accounts, change the passwords for these services. Updating these passwords might take you a while, and remembering the new passwords leads to additional problems. (Keep reading to find a solution.)
Here are some other tips:
<ul>
<li>When choosing new passwords, use combinations of lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Passwords that use all these elements are stronger than those that don't.</li>
<li>Don't write your passwords down because this increases the risk of identity theft.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li>Don't tell anyone your new passwords.</li>
</ul>
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/the-most-secure-way-to-share-passwords" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Most Secure Way to Share Passwords</a>.

<h2>How Common Is a Data Hack?</h2>
More common than you think. Hackers were responsible for more than 4,000 attacks every day in 2020, and the total number of compromised records exceeded 37 billion. That's a 141% increase from 2019. Much of this compromised data appears on the dark web, where cybercriminals use it to facilitate illegal activities such as identity theft and money laundering.&nbsp;
If you have been the subject of a data hack, you are not alone. However, it's important to act quickly to prevent hackers from accessing your personal or financial accounts.&nbsp;
There are other types of cybercrime to consider. Cybercriminals use techniques like phishing, where they impersonate people online and trick victims into handing over their personal information. Phishing now accounts for more than 80% of all cybersecurity incidents, and criminals steal $17,700 every minute in these attacks.&nbsp;

<h2>What Kind of Information Do Hackers Steal?</h2>
Hackers steal all kinds of personal and financial information:
<ul>
<li>Names</li>
<li>Email addresses</li>
<li>Usernames</li>
<li>Passwords</li>
<li>Addresses</li>
<li>Phone numbers</li>
<li>Bank account details</li>
<li>Credit card numbers</li>
<li>Social Security numbers</li>
<li>Insurance information&nbsp;</li>
<li>IRS information</li>
<li>Photos</li>
<li>Private message</li>
<li>SMS messages</li>
</ul>
Nothing is off-limits for hackers, and these criminals go to great lengths to steal your data. Once they have access to the information above, hackers can transfer money from your bank accounts, use your identity to apply for financing, and damage your credit file.&nbsp;
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/the-scariest-data-breaches-of-all-time" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Scariest Data Breaches of All Time</a>.
TeamPassword is the best password manager for teams. Features include two-step verification, password encryption, easy password sharing, and more.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Get a free trial now</a>&nbsp;and learn how TeamPassword keeps you safe online.&nbsp;

<h2>Have I Been Hacked? How to Stay Safe.</h2>
There are several ways to improve online security and prevent hackers from accessing your personal information:
<ul>
<li>Use the latest security software and apps when using devices and browsing the internet.</li>
<li>Carry out regular risk assessments where you evaluate your security software.</li>
<li>Back up personal data to a reputable cloud service instead of keeping it on your device.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Don't share personal information with other people.</li>
<li>Create a security management strategy for your organization and share it with all team members.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
Using a password manager is another way to stay safe online. The best ones encrypt your online passwords so hackers can't access these credentials, and you can keep passwords in a secure cloud-based vault and not have to remember them. There are various password managers online, including free ones available through most internet browsers, but not all tools are the same.&nbsp;
If you work alongside a team, consider TeamPassword. It's the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.teampassword.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password manager for teams</a>&nbsp;that require world-class security and performance. This all-in-one password solution helps teams like yours store, manage, and share passwords in the safest way possible.&nbsp;

<h2>How Can TeamPassword Help?</h2>
TeamPassword prevents hackers from stealing your organization's most sensitive data with an incredible range of password management features. Enterprises of all sizes use TeamPassword to manage passwords, including tech startups, digital marketing agencies, creative agencies, and software and development teams.
Here are some&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/features" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TeamPassword features</a>&nbsp;that prevent situations involving a stolen password:
<ul>
<li>Random password generation that creates unique passwords for websites.</li>
<li>Two-step password verification.</li>
<li>Activity and logging tools so you can discover who has access to password management features.</li>
<li>Secure encryption technology.</li>
<li>Email notifications about password management actions.</li>
<li>Passwords stored securely in one place. </li>
</ul>
<h2>Final Word</h2>
If you're looking for the answer to the question, "Have I been hacked?" it's difficult to know for sure. Preventing hackers from compromising your data in the first place provides a better resolution. TeamPassword lets you store and manage passwords in a secure environment and minimize the effects of a stolen password so you can avoid hackers stealing your data and continue to collaborate on team projects.&nbsp;
With features like password encryption, two-step authentication, and random password generation, TeamPassword is the best password management solution for teams that want to improve online security.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up for a free trial</a>&nbsp;now.

Have I been hacked? Here's how to check if you have and learn how to stop hackers from stealing your data. | TeamPassword Blog

Have I been hacked? Here's how to check if you have and learn how to stop hackers from ...

Have I Been Hacked? How to Know for Sure.

Most modern browsers offer an autofill function. The browser stores your name, phone number, address, etc. so that every time you fill out a form, you do not need to fill out the information line by line.&nbsp;
However, what you save in tedious work you lose in potential security risks. This is especially the case if the computer is shared. While most people know not to put their personal information into a public computer at the library, they may forget that other people might jump on to their computer at home or in a dorm room&mdash;or that someone might grab their smartphone right off their table while working in a caf&eacute;.
Even if you are not concerned about the security issues, the data stored may be out of date, have an error in it, or otherwise require you to constantly change a single field after autofill is completed.&nbsp;
In this article we will learn how to add, delete, and modify all or some of the autofill information in your Google Chrome browser, as well as other information you may wish to remove.
<h2>How to delete unwanted autofill entries on Chrome browser</h2>
You can clear all or only some of your autofill data in Chrome. Let&rsquo;s take a look at these two cases below.
<h3>Clear all autofill entries directly via Chrome settings in your toolbar</h3>
Use the following instructions to clear all of your autofill information in Chrome:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Open Chrome</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click the&nbsp;three dot symbol &gt; More Tools &gt; Clear browsing data...</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click the&nbsp;Advanced tab in the new window, and select&nbsp;All time from the drop down.&nbsp;</li>
<li aria-level="1">Check the Autofill form data&nbsp;box. Be sure to unselect all others if you do not wish to delete other data</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click the Clear data button</li>
</ol>
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/JJ9oIPCRoe0qHCnu5Fqs" alt="undefined" width="397" height="333" /> &nbsp; &nbsp; <img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/YduonhM8SryTCFvCd5O7" alt="undefined" width="394" height="361" /> &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
You have now cleared all of your autofill data in Chrome. But what if you want to delete only part of the information?
<h3>Clear some autofill entries directly via the autofill tab of Chrome settings</h3>
Follow the steps below to clear only part of your autofill information in Chrome:
<ol>
<li aria-level="1">Open Chrome</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click the&nbsp;three dot symbol in the top right corner</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click Settings</li>
<li aria-level="1">Click the&nbsp;Autofill tab</li>
<li aria-level="1">Here, you can individually edit or delete the different autofill categories: passwords, payment methods, and addresses and more</li>
</ol>
<h2>How to make specific changes to what autofill saves</h2>
If your computer is regularly used by others, or you are currently using a public computer, you may wish to turn off autofill entirely. Let&rsquo;s look at different types of autofill information stored by Google and how to disable them. This may also be wise if you regularly use these devices in public where a thief can get their hands on them.
<h3>Passwords</h3>
The &ldquo;Offer to save passwords&rdquo; setting allows you to save passwords in Chrome. This can be done in all modern&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/how-to-save-passwords-in-chrome-and-alternatives">browsers</a>. However,&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/are-chrome-passwords-safe" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">saving passwords in a browser might not be the safest or easiest option</a>. Flipping this toggle to off will disable Chrome&rsquo;s password saving feature. You can also disable this functionality in other&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/how-to-disable-your-browsers-built-in-password-manager" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">browsers</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/P1IBEoW2QbtQaWIXnVTq" alt="undefined" width="860" height="216" />
<h3>Payment methods</h3>
To turn off autofill for payment methods, find &ldquo;Save and fill payment methods&rdquo; and set the toggle button to off. You can also see a link below this that you can follow to clear any autofill payment information currently stored in Chrome.
<h3>Addresses and more</h3>
This information includes your email address, physical address, phone number, etc. Similar to above, find &ldquo;Save and fill addresses&rdquo; and flip the toggle to off.
<h2>What is autofill and how does it work?</h2>
Autofill does exactly what it sounds like. By default, Chrome will remember what you input into different form fields and then add that information automatically whenever you encounter the same field in the future.&nbsp;
Autofill saves time and reduces the hassle of providing information in the future. While filling out an address doesn&rsquo;t take most people much time while working on their PC or laptop, typing in number and letter combinations, especially when your address has uncommon words or non-dictionary words that make autocorrect hiccup, can be rather time-consuming. If it leads to incorrect information on those forms, then the delays to shipments could cause further issues.
No technology is without its drawbacks. You should take the time to understand the security implications of using Chrome autofill.
<h2>Reasons why autofill may not be working correctly</h2>
Autofill might not be working for various reasons. Sometimes it is simply that friends or family have used your computer recently to fill in their own information and now Google Chrome is confused about what is the correct information.
Other times it might be that your information has been changed by government edict. In Canada, the postal code (like a zip code but fancier with letters) format has changed from A1A-1A1 to A1A 1A1 and now A1A1A1 over time. Because of this change, many postal code form fields are limited to six characters now instead of seven (bye bye space). Then, you might find Chrome autofill always adding &ldquo;A1A 1A&rdquo;, which you need to go and manually change to &ldquo;A1A1A1&rdquo;. And if you are super lazy, this might persist for a few years until you are tasked with writing about how to clear autofill in Chrome and finally get around to fixing the information&hellip;&nbsp;
However, whatever the issue, it is easy to change the Chrome autofill settings.
<h2>Other data settings to keep in mind</h2>
Accessing the same menu, you can delete all of the other information your browser is storing. Doing this periodically is a practical and proactive step to help reduce your risk online. The following are some other types of information that you should consider clearing along with autofill in Chrome:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Browsing history</li>
<li aria-level="1">Cookies and other site data</li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://macpaw.com/how-to/clear-cache-on-mac" target="_blank" data-saferedirecturl="https://www.google.com/url?q=https://macpaw.com/how-to/clear-cache-on-mac&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1648309794332000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1lwRodBSl30WBTzbWzYHap" rel="follow noopener">Cached images and files on your Mac</a> (or any other device)</li>
</ul>
Anyone who touches your device, whether&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/prevent-password-theft-from-ex-employees" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">at the office</a>, the caf&eacute;, or on the subway (if you accidentally leave your briefcase behind), with or without your permission, can access every account you have saved in Chrome passwords.&nbsp;
This leaves you wide open to being hacked.
<h2>Is Chrome autofill safe?&nbsp;</h2>
While convenient, using Chrome to store passwords and credit cards is not secure. If the device on which you have autofill enabled is stolen or accessed by someone else, they can easily get into your accounts. Chrome's password manager also lacks a way to share logins with coworkers, making it completely inappropriate for use at work.
We recommend using a <a href="https://teampassword.com/" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">password manager</a> instead. Password managers store your passwords in an encrypted environment and can even be used to store credit card information and addresses in the Note section, as the entire record is secured with AES 256-bit encryption.&nbsp;
<h2>What should I use instead of Chrome autofill?</h2>
TeamPassword offers a fast, safe, and easy solution for storing and managing your passwords that doesn&rsquo;t leave you vulnerable to Chrome password security issues.
Create and customize strong passwords that you can use with any browser or device and access all your passwords whenever and wherever you need them. With TeamPassword, your passwords are secure, even if your device falls into the wrong hands.&nbsp;
A&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">dedicated password manager</a> protects you by requiring you to log in with a separate &ldquo;master&rdquo; password. It automatically locks your passwords after a specific amount of time has passed. With browser extensions and apps, password managers are only slightly less convenient than Chrome's built-features, but&nbsp;a lot more secure.&nbsp;
TeamPassword has a Chrome extension which autofills to most website and shows you record information from a dropdown without needing to go to separate page.
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/H6sqhcSSGARs0vTaPvw6" alt="undefined" width="559" height="389" />
It also has extensive features for safe credential sharing - something Chrome's password feature lacks entirely. Passwords are categorized into Groups, and team members are given access to Groups as needed. Removing members and editing records is just as easy.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.

Learn how to clear your autofill on Chrome to protect your passwords. Use TeamPassword instead of letting Chrome remember your passwords for you.

Don't store your passwords in Chrome, it's not safe. Clear your Chrome Autofill and use TeamPassword instead.

How to Clear Autofill on Chrome (Protect Your Data!)

How to Clear Autofill on Chrome: Protect Your Internet Security by Clearing Chrome’s Saved Information

Single sign-on (SSO) is a way for a user to have a single set of login credentials for multiple applications. This is different from reusing the same login credentials, i.e., name and password, for multiple sites, which is incredibly <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">dangerous</a>.
With SSO, you are using a single login system, which then allows you to access multiple other sites, so you are introducing vulnerability by sharing the same credentials across many platforms.
Opposite to SSO, there is SLO (single log-out, which is sometimes called single sign-off), which is a single action leading to the termination of access to many different systems.
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> is an accredited secure provider utilizing state-of-the-art encryption technology for its <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager</a>. Whatever other security measures you have in place, make TeamPassword a part of your security protocols to facilitate secure and easy collaboration across your organization.
When you save new passwords, the data is hashed, salted, and encrypted locally on your computer before being uploaded to TeamPassword via an encrypted connection. This level of encryption makes it impossible for nefarious actors to intercept your passwords.
 &rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
Sign up today for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">free 14-day TeamPassword trial</a> and protect your company's digital assets from cybercriminals.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>How single sign-on works</h2>
SSO is a type of federated identity management (FIM) arrangement. FIM refers to the establishment of trusted relationships between an organization and third parties, e.g., application vendors or partners, which allows them to share identities and authenticate users across domains. <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/what-is-oauth-20-and-how-can-teampassword-help-you">OAuth</a> (Open Authorization) is the framework that enables the user's account information to be used by third-party services, such as Facebook, without exposing the user's password.
The basic web SSO service works as follows:&nbsp;
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The agent module on the application server retrieves the authentication credentials for a user from a dedicated SSO policy server.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Then, the agent module authenticates the user against the user repository, e.g., a lightweight directory access protocol directory.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The service then authenticates the user for all applications for which the user has been given rights, thus eliminating the need for further password prompts during the session. This is done using SSO tokens.</li>
</ol>
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>Types of SSO configurations</h2>
Many terms are used when discussing SSO, including Federated Identity Management (FIM), OAuth (nowadays OAuth 2.1), OpenID Connect (OIDC), Security Access Markup Language (SAML), and Same Sign-On (SSO).
SSO systems can be configured using different protocols. Two of them are Kerberos and SAML. They work as follows:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">SAML:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/customer-spotlight-robert-lowry-vts">SAML</a> is an extensible markup language&nbsp;(XML) standard that facilitates the exchange of user authentication and authorization data across secure domains. SAML-based SSO services require communications among the user, the identity provider that maintains the user directory, and the service provider.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Kereberos: In a Kerberos-based setup, a ticket-granting ticket (<a href="https://searchenterprisedesktop.techtarget.com/definition/authentication-ticket">TGT</a>) is issued when the user credentials are provided. The TGT then retrieves service tickets for any other applications the user tries to access so that the user does not need to personally provide further credentials.</li>
</ul>
Differently, a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/one-time-passwords-vs-two-factor-authentication">smartcard</a>-based SSO requires the user to use a physical card holding the sign-in credentials for the first login. After using the information provided by the smartcard, the user will not have to enter any other usernames or passwords. Different SSO smartcards store either certificates or passwords.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>What are the most popular SSO solutions?</h2>
The following are some of the most popular SSO solutions available today:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Duo Single Sign-On (SSO)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Ping Identity</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Ping Identity</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">CyberArk Workforce Identity</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Lastpass Enterprise</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">LastPass Logo</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Microsoft Azure Active Directory</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Okta Single Sign-On</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">OneLogin Secure Single Sign-On</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">RSA SecureID Access</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">SecureAuth Identity Platform</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Symantec VIP Access Manager SSO</li>
</ul>
In our quest to become more secure, passwords become less and less easy to remember. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of securely remembering your passwords while you focus on growing a successful business! Using a third-party SSO service, such as your Gmail SSO, you can securely use TeamPassword.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>What makes a true SSO system?</h2>
A true SSO system means you do not need to reenter credentials moving from site to site. Once you log in to the system, it submits all the credentials behind the scenes using SSO tokens for you as you move from one site to another.&nbsp;
This is the key point of SSO as in single sign-on. It requires the trust relationship among the sites to be performed as a true SSO solution.&nbsp;
So what is SSO (as in same sign-on), besides the frustrating reuse of the same abbreviation? Same sign-on is very similar to SSO, with the big difference being that you need to keep logging in as you move from site to site even though you use the same credentials.&nbsp;
If you use your browser to save your passwords (and <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/are-chrome-passwords-safe">you shouldn&rsquo;t if you currently are</a>), then it likely types in the username and password fields for you as you enter a site, and then you need to click login all the same. Thus, you still need to log in to each website individually, even if it is accomplished with the same credentials as your browser.
If you are using the much more secure <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/whats-the-best-small-business-password-manager">password manager system</a>, then things are similar. As you navigate from page to page, you are prompted to log in with the same credentials&mdash;those of your password manager&mdash;which then fills in the specific username and password for the website you are trying to access.&nbsp;
With SSO, meaning single sign-on as used throughout, you can log in to all applications for which you are approved once and with only one set of credentials, including cloud applications, on-premises applications, and web applications.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<h2>What are some types of SSO?</h2>
<h3>Social SSO</h3>
Facebook, Google, LinkedIn, and Twitter all offer popular SSO services. While these services are convenient and simple to begin using, they can present security risks as they create a single point of failure that can be exploited by attackers.
More recently, Apple unveiled its own SSO service as part of its repositioning as a more privacy-conscious company. Sign-in with Apple offers enhanced security as it requires users to use two-factor authentication (<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-with-2fa">2FA</a>) on all Apple ID accounts to support integration with Face ID and Touch ID on iOS devices.
<h3>Enterprise SSO</h3>
Enterprise single sign-on (eSSO) software products and services are based on a client-server structure and are used to log in the user to target applications by replaying user credentials. One benefit is that target applications do not need to be modified to work with the eSSO system.
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<h2>Advantages of SSO</h2>
The advantages of SSO include the following:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">It allows users to remember and manage fewer passwords and usernames.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The process of signing on and using applications is streamlined by no longer needing to reenter passwords.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">It reduces the chance of a successful phishing attack.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">The risks from third-party sites are mitigated by the federated system.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">IT costs are reduced due to the decrease in the number of IT help desk calls about passwords.</li>
</ul>
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<h2>Disadvantages of SSO</h2>
Some disadvantages of SSO are the following:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Different sites may require different levels of security, but SSO offers a uniform level of security.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">If the SSO system becomes unavailable, then users are locked out of all their services.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">If unauthorized users gain access, then they could gain access to more than one application.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Since the risk of stolen or abused SSO credentials is higher, it necessitates a much higher level of security during the initial credentialing process.</li>
</ul>
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<h2>What is an SSO token?</h2>
The SSO token is a collection of data passed between systems during the SSO process. It contains the information required to log in to the system and proof of its veracity. The information could include an email address and must be digitally signed to be accepted.
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<h2>Is SSO secure?</h2>
As always, the answer to this question is &ldquo;sometimes.&rdquo;&nbsp;
While SSO can improve security in many ways, like all security systems, it is not infallible. With a single username and password, the user is more likely to pick a long and secure password, as well as change it regularly. This reduced &ldquo;password fatigue&rdquo; also prevents users from recycling credentials.&nbsp;
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<h2>Security risks and SSO</h2>
While SSO is convenient to use and does provide the opportunity for users to swap multiple passwords for one complex password, they may choose to have one simple password anyways. They may also reuse it for personal accounts, introducing risk to your enterprise.&nbsp;
Since the risks of a compromised account are so much higher when that single account can grant access to all the applications used by an organization, organizations must be extra vigilant in how they grant, use, and manage their SSO system. 2FA or even multifactor authentication (<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/can-you-put-a-price-on-your-security">MFA</a>) is one way they can improve their overall security system.
Don't let your company fall victim to extortion emails, credential stuffing, and other password vulnerabilities. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of security while you focus on growing a successful business!
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This article explains what is SSO (single sign-on), how it can be used, and what makes it secure to keep all of your information safe.

This article explains what is SSO (single sign-on), how it can be used, and what makes it secure ...

What Is Single Sign-On (SSO)?

What Is SSO?

If one member of your team uses a weak password, it exposes your entire network to threats. Likewise, if one member of your team reuses their strong password elsewhere and it is <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/have-i-been-pwnd-what-to-do-when-it-happens">pwned</a>, then your entire network is exposed.&nbsp;
Passwords have become the main point of entry for hackers. Any password complex enough to garner security cannot be remembered easily, and with an ever-increasing number of passwords being needed, users often <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reuse</a> them, which is a huge security risk.&nbsp;
Between weak and reused passwords, your network is far less secure than it would be by design. The first step in rectifying this situation is to audit passwords on your network. A password audit is simply using similar software as hackers to test your network against <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/the-truth-about-terrible-passwords">dictionary attacks</a>, <a href="about:blank">brute force attacks</a>, and more.&nbsp;
Special software is used to audit passwords. They attempt to break into your network similarly to nefarious actors to show you all of your password vulnerabilities, from weak passwords to pwned passwords, so that your network can realize maximum security.
The best way to secure your IT infrastructure is to use a password manager that includes sharing features. TeamPassword offers high-level encryption and two-factor authentication so that only the right people can make sense of the passwords.
Before anyone can access the list of shared passwords, they must log in to the platform using their personal password and a short-term authentication code.
Teams often need to share passwords to access mutual accounts, but you don't have to put your data at risk to make this possible. Instead, use<a href="https://teampassword.com/"> TeamPassword</a> to securely generate, store, and share passwords within a team.&nbsp;
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If you&rsquo;re unsure where to begin, <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">sign up for a TeamPassword free trial</a> to secure your shared passwords once and for all.
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<h2>Why Audit Passwords?</h2>
The fact is that passwords are fatally flawed: they need to be complex and unique, they need to be different for each site, you need to remember them, and you shouldn&rsquo;t store them somewhere unsafe like on a post-it note on your monitor or an <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-or-excel">Excel</a> file. Human nature is hard to avoid, and it runs counter to the aim of secure passwords.&nbsp;
Of course, a strong <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/whats-the-best-small-business-password-manager">password manager</a> helps, but before you get the most out of the added security and convenience of a password manager, you need to be confident that the passwords being used to access your network are secure.&nbsp;
Let&rsquo;s assume everyone on your team understands that they shouldn&rsquo;t reuse passwords and have chosen a unique one for their work login, as well as the logins for all the tools they use at work. That&rsquo;s great.
Let&rsquo;s assume you enforce password complexity to maximize security. That means everyone must choose a password with a minimum length of 12 characters and that it must have at least one each of lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, and a set of characters. That is, it meets the following requirements:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Lowercase letter {abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz}</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Uppercase letter {ABCDEFGHIJKLMNOPQRSTUVWXYZ}</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Number {0123456789}</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Character {!@#$%^&amp;*()_+{}|:"&lt;&gt;?~`-=[]\;',./}</li>
</ul>
That&rsquo;s great, too. But, is it enough? Well, to crack that password by trying 20,000,000,000 attempts per second, which is easily accomplished using a cloud computing platform, would take a maximum of approximately 6,600 years and an average of half that, or 3,300 years. Problem solved, right?&nbsp;
Well, it depends on what kind of passwords your team is choosing. If they are picking truly random passwords, then it is unlikely anyone will ever crack those codes. But there&rsquo;s a difference between passwords that can be brute force attacked and those that are easy to guess. For example, &ldquo;Password#333&rdquo; matches the requirements but isn&rsquo;t going to take any longer than &ldquo;password&rdquo; to guess.
To understand this fully, we need to understand the difference between a brute force attack and a dictionary attack. The brute force attack starts with &ldquo;aaaaaaaaaaaa,&rdquo; then &ldquo;aaaaaaaaaaab,&rdquo; and so on until the password is found.&nbsp;
A dictionary attack, conversely, tries every word in a dictionary. Although these dictionaries might include the entire Oxford English Dictionary, they go well beyond that and include the words commonly used as passwords and variations of those passwords. For example, in addition to &ldquo;password,&rdquo; they might include &ldquo;p4ssw0rd&rdquo;, &ldquo;pa55word&rdquo;, &ldquo;passwordpassword,&rdquo; etc.&nbsp;
Passwords need to be safe from both, and auditing passwords will tell you whether you have either issue.
Don't let your company fall victim to extortion emails, credential stuffing, or any other password vulnerability. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of security while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<h2>How do you Audit Passwords?</h2>
To audit passwords, you need to use specialized software. We provide a list of several popular tools to audit passwords in the following section. But how do they work?
Essentially, the password auditing tools attempt to guess the passwords being used on your network. They do this through a combination of dictionary and brute force attacks, among other attacks, and then notify you about any other ways that the passwords might be compromised, for example, by being pwned.
Once you have performed a password audit, you can then notify any users whose passwords have been compromised or too weak so that they can change them.
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<h2>What are some tools to audit passwords?</h2>
You&rsquo;ve decided to audit the passwords on your network, but what program should you use? Here are five popular password auditing apps.&nbsp;
<h3>RainbowCrack</h3>
RainbowCrack is based on Phillippe Oechslin&rsquo;s faster time-memory trade-off technique. It is a brute force hash cracker that generates all possible plaintexts and then computes the corresponding hashes on the fly. Next, it compares the hashes to the one that needs to be cracked.&nbsp;
If a match has been found, then the plaintext has also been found. Conversely, if all possible plaintexts have been tested, but no match has been found, then the plaintext has not been found.&nbsp;
RainbowCrack requires a pre-computation stage that involves time-consuming computations.
<h3>Wfuzz</h3>
Wfuzz is another tool designed to brute force attack web applications. It was originally created to assess web applications, but it can also be used to find hidden resources, e.g., directories, servlets, and scripts.
<h3>Cain and Abel</h3>
Cain and Abel is a password recovery tool. It is available for Microsoft operating systems. It can help recover lost passwords by using several types of attacks. These include dictionary attacks, brute force attacks, and cryptanalysis attacks.&nbsp;
It can also decode scrambled passwords, record VoIP conversations, reveal password boxes, uncover cached passwords, recover wireless network keys, and analyze routing protocols.
Cain and Abel was originally developed for use by network administrators, teachers, security consultants, forensic investigators, network penetration testers, etc.&lrm; &lrm;
<h3>THC Hydra</h3>
THC Hydra is a common choice for performing brute force cracks of remote authentication services because it can perform quick dictionary attacks on more than 50 protocols, such as Telnet, FTP, HTTP, https, smb, and various databases.
THC Hydra is a fast network login password cracking tool. New modules can be installed easily to enhance its features. It is currently available for Windows, Linux, Free BSD, Solaris, and OS X.
<h3>Ncrack</h3>
Ncrack is another fast network authentication cracking tool. It was originally designed to help companies improve the security of their networks by testing their hosts and network devices for poor passwords.&nbsp;
Because Ncrack enables rapid, reliable, and large-scale password auditing, it is also used by security professionals. Furthermore, it has a flexible interface that gives the user full control of network operations.&nbsp;
The protocols supported include RDP, SSH, HTTP(S), SMB, POP3(S), VNC, FTP, SIP, Redis, PostgreSQL, MySQL, and Telnet.
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<h2>What are common issues found in when you audit passwords?</h2>
<h3>Weak Passwords</h3>
Weak passwords are too short, too simple, or too common.&nbsp;
The too short and/or too common passwords can be found easily through brute force attacks because the total number of testable passwords before hitting the correct password combination is too low compared to modern computing as a service capabilities.&nbsp;
Too common passwords, for example, your child&rsquo;s name, are highly vulnerable to dictionary attacks.&nbsp;
Whichever type of weak passwords is found, all affected passwords should be changed immediately.
<h3>Compromised Passwords</h3>
A &ldquo;pwned&rdquo; password is one that has been leaked online. This is when a username and password combination has been hacked on some site, so hackers can integrate those credentials into the ones they test when trying to break into other networks.&nbsp;
Since people regularly reuse passwords despite all recommendations against the practice, these pwned passwords are likely to show up on your network, and they need to be changed asap.
<h3>Identical Passwords</h3>
If the same password is being used for several accounts, this is another risk that can be found during password audits. Be sure to replace these repeated credentials.
<h3>Expired Passwords</h3>
Depending on security requirements, passwords can expire. If expired passwords are being found, then they need to be changed. A good password audit will show currently expired as well as soon-to-be expired passwords.
Whatever issues are found during your password audit, the best thing you can do to prevent further issues is to help your users create strong passwords by providing a password manager. Only with <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> can you facilitate your team in being proactive participants in network security.&nbsp;
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This article explains how to audit your passwords, what auditing your passwords means, and why you should audit passwords. | TeamPassword

This article explains how to audit your passwords, what auditing your passwords means, and why you should audit ...

How to Audit Passwords

Getting a joint credit card account is common for married couples - but you&rsquo;re not married to your coworkers. Usually married people will eventually combine their finances to some degree, and sharing credit cards to increase their rewards points or cashback is a natural part of that process.
But what about coworkers? Is it ever safe to share credit cards with coworkers? Although many companies will be tempted to share credit card numbers across teams to make small purchases easier, there really is no safe way to share credit cards.&nbsp;
While sharing credit cards with coworkers safely isn&rsquo;t really possible, you can share passwords across your team with <a href="https://teampassword.com/">TeamPassword</a>.&nbsp;
As your company increases the number of different online services you utilize to compete in the modern ecommerce landscape, it becomes harder for your employees to keep track of all of their login information. This leads to password <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reuse</a> or weak passwords.&nbsp;
TeamPassword can increase productivity at the same time as improving your security.
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<h2>What is a joint credit card account?</h2>
A joint credit card allows you to share a credit card with another person, usually your spouse or family member. It is very rare to share credit cards with coworkers in this way.
This is different from adding an authorized user to your account because, as joint account holders, both users of the credit card are legally responsible for the combined debt accrued by both users.
Conversely, an authorized user is permitted to make purchases with the card, but they are not responsible for the debt. Only the account owner may be penalized if they fail to repay the debt or miss payments.
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<h2>Should you open a joint credit card account?</h2>
Sharing a credit card requires a lot of trust. It also requires a firm understanding of the spending habits of each joint account holder. In the case of sharing credit cards with coworkers, all of these issues are exacerbated.
That&rsquo;s why at TeamPassword we are inundated with emails from clients asking about how to share credit cards with coworkers using our password manager.&nbsp;
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<h2>The problem with opening a joint credit card account</h2>
Here is a composite of several emails we have received recently:
Hi there,

We have recently started using TeamPassword to share login information across our team and it's been great.&nbsp;
However, we&rsquo;d also like to be sharing credit cards with coworkers. We are a small business and usually only an account manager needs to have access to the cards, but at times other team members also need to pay for expenses.
We are currently using TeamPassword to share credit card numbers.&nbsp;
Right now, we have the cardholder name as a username, the credit card number as a password, and use the notes section for the three-digit code on the back, the expiry date, and the billing address.
Is this safe? Is this advisable? Is there a better way of doing this?

Thank you!
Basically, some clients are using their password manager vault to share credit card numbers with coworkers. Let&rsquo;s answer the questions asked in this email.&nbsp;
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<h2>Is it safe?</h2>
TeamPassword is an incredibly secure system, based around two-factor authentication (2FA) and the latest cryptography best practices. While your credit card is stored in your TeamPassword vault, it is safe.
When you save new passwords, or your credit card number to share with coworkers, the data is hashed, salted, and encrypted locally on your computer before being uploaded to TeamPassword via an encrypted connection. This level of encryption makes it impossible for criminals to intercept your passwords.
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Sign up today for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">free 14-day TeamPassword trial</a> and protect your company's digital assets from cybercriminals.
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<h2>Is it advisable?</h2>
While the password is safe in the Internet security sense of the word, we cannot say this is an advisable solution. There are a couple main reasons why we recommend against using a password manager to share credit cards with coworkers.&nbsp;
First, since your team members are not authorized users on the account, giving them access to your private information is not a good idea.&nbsp;
It might even void your credit card&rsquo;s anti-theft/fraud insurance if they find out that the thief got your credit card information from you sharing your credit card information contrary to the terms of service agreement for your card.
Second, as much as we all love our teammates and hope our time together never ends, sadly, employees leave from time to time, and in this case, they could leave after writing your credit card number down.&nbsp;
With a password, you can easily get TeamPassword to create new passwords for every account after a team member departs. However, this is not so easy or convenient with a credit card number.
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<h2>Is there a better way?</h2>
While there might not be a better way to share your credit card number with coworkers, especially when they are not next to you in the office during these COVID-19 times, there are two better ways to deal with this issue.&nbsp;
<h3>Reimbursement</h3>
The classic approach to this problem is to have your employees use their own credit cards, send you a copy of the receipt, and then reimburse them.&nbsp;
Keep in mind that employees will be aggravated if they find themselves jumping through a lot of hoops to be reimbursed, waiting months to be reimbursed, or find reasonable purchases being denied reimbursements.&nbsp;
Conversely, if you are prompt about reimbursing your team members, the perk of earning air miles or cash back at work might make this their preferred solution.
<h3>A special corporate credit card</h3>
While corporate credit cards are becoming less common over time, Stripe has recently released The Stripe Corporate Card, a corporate card designed for the modern work experience.
<a href="https://stripe.com/corporate-card">The Stripe Corporate Card</a> is an easy way for everyone in your company to handle expenses.&nbsp;
While we recommend against using <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> for sharing credit cards with coworkers, our secure password manager is still great at keeping your other information secure online while being accessible to the whole team.&nbsp;
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This article explains when, how, and with whom to share credit cards safely and whether sharing credit cards with coworkers is safe.

This article explains when, how, and with whom to share credit cards safely and whether sharing credit cards ...

Sharing Credit Cards with Coworkers

(Trigger warning: This conversation deals with issues that can be triggering to some victims. The content includes sexual assault and abuse, including minors, and while all attempts have been made to keep the specifics as minimal as possible, this is a very difficult topic to read about for everybody and especially those who have suffered or continue to suffer. Please prepare yourself or consider reading this similar <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/extortion-emails-what-they-are-how-do-they-happen">article about more general cases of extortion</a>.)
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Sextortion actually refers to two separate, heinous crimes. On the one hand, it is the act of coercing someone through threats or promises to perform sexual acts. In this case, the victims are often underage.
On the other hand, sextortion can also refer to the act of blackmailing someone into performing other actions under the threat of the release of sexually explicit material. For example, a hacker may find nude photos of the would-be victim and then use those photos to coerce them into giving up their company login credentials to facilitate committing further cybercrimes.&nbsp;
Don't let yourself fall victim to sextortion, extortion emails, credential stuffing, and other password vulnerabilities. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of security while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<h2>What is sextortion</h2>
Sending nude photos has become a common form of flirtation. So long as both parties are consenting adults, there is nothing inherently wrong with such expression. However, when you use webcams for such flirtations with strangers on the Internet, you risk the person not being who they say they are.&nbsp;
Many criminals prey on the lonely, using fake personas to gain their victim&rsquo;s trust. As part of this elaborate extortion plan, they get the victim to perform sexual acts in front of their camera.&nbsp;
By enticing the person to perform such acts, whether by acting as a friendly ear to all the victim&rsquo;s problems to groom children or posing as an attractive woman to get adults to strip, they then gain sexually explicit imagery of the victim to use as a further coercive tool.&nbsp;
These video recordings are then leveraged against the victim to extort them into performing further acts. This sextortion can be to perform further sexual acts. For example, they may then force women to further provide nude videos to sextort others or force them to perform sexual acts in person.&nbsp;
Alternatively, the sextortion might come in the form of threatening to release the videos if certain conditions aren&rsquo;t met. This is often the case when a closeted member of the LGBT community is being threatened over sexual details which would reveal their sexual preference.&nbsp;
It could also be the case that a person is married, and this would be leveraged against the threat of sending adulterous evidence to their spouse.
Sadly, &ldquo;slut-shaming&rdquo; and other misogynist views about the differential sexuality of men and women, or girls and boys as the case may be, means that simply threatening to release nude photos of a female victim can be used to coerce her to be a part of further sexual victimhood.&nbsp;
However, it is worth underlining that both men and women of all ages can be victims. The best way to prevent becoming a victim is to be careful with whom you communicate online and how you communicate with them.
Sextortion can take the form of being blackmailed or being coerced into carrying out sexual acts. Let&rsquo;s look at these two different forms of sextortion.
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<h2>Sextortion as abuse of power</h2>
In the case of sextortion as an abuse of power, a person in authority uses their authority to coerce someone into performing sexual acts. For example, sextortion may be demanded by a judge from a defendant, a teacher from a student, a police officer from a prostitute, or a boss from an employee.&nbsp;
In the case of the latter, Harvey Weinstein became a household name after it came to light that he had sextorted many young Hollywood starlets seeking a career on the big screen. In this case, as well as many others, non-disclosure agreements (NDAs) were abused to keep the sextortion secret for years.&nbsp;
This form of sextortion is incredibly hard to prevent. Someone in a position of authority is abusing that authority, and your only course of action is to report it to the authorities immediately. Since they have some power over you as well as a reasonable circumstance to find themselves alone with you, it can be frustratingly hard to prevent, escape, and prove. This has been a major antecedent of the #metoo movement.
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<h2>Sextortion as a form of blackmail</h2>
In this form of sextortion, the criminal uses sexually explicit material produced by the victim to force them to perform further acts.&nbsp;
The criminal first acquires sexually explicit material through one of many different ways. They may have used some catfishing tactics to trick the victim into sharing the content. They may have hacked the victim&rsquo;s smartphone, intercepted their sexually explicit SMS images, or even <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/what-happened-with-the-zoom-credentials-hack">taken control of their webcam</a> to record the victim changing or performing sexual acts without them knowing.
Once the perpetrator has sexually explicit material from the victim, they use the threat of its release and the implications therein&mdash;from potentially ruining a marriage to outing a person as a member of the LGBT community&mdash;to gain leverage over the victim.&nbsp;
The victim is then forced to act as the blackmailer so desires. In many cases, this means performing further sexual acts. The victim might even be forced into hardcore pornography or to sexually gratify the perpetrator in person.&nbsp;
Alternatively, the victim may be forced to pay money for silence (and then, likely, forced, again and again, to pay even more). There are also cases where high-ranking government or business officials have been sextorted to abuse their position on behalf of the sextortionist.&nbsp;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> is an accredited secure provider utilizing state-of-the-art encryption technology for its <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager</a>.
When you save new passwords, the data is hashed, salted, and encrypted locally on your computer before being uploaded to TeamPassword via an encrypted connection. This level of encryption makes it impossible for nefarious actors to intercept your passwords and gain access to any nude selfies you&rsquo;ve sent your partner.
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Sign up today for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">free 14-day TeamPassword trial</a> and protect your company's digital assets from cybercriminals.
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<h2>Has this happened to you or someone you know?</h2>
If you have become a victim of sextortion, there are some things you should do and some things you shouldn&rsquo;t do. It isn&rsquo;t your fault, and there are real actions you can take to remedy the situation. <a href="https://www.opencounseling.com/suicide-hotlines">There is also immediate help available for your emotional state</a>. Here is a list of actions that you can follow when you feel strong enough to make positive changes to your situation.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Don&rsquo;t Panic: As said above, understand that you are the victim. The sextortion isn&rsquo;t your fault, and it says nothing about who you are. In addition to the help provided by the services linked above, there are places you can find further aid. Indeed, this is a criminal act, and you should report it.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Don&rsquo;t pay: Most studies on sextortion indicate that criminals will not post images of you if you refuse to pay. Indeed, once they post your images or videos, they lose all leverage and any chance of a payout in the future. Conversely, if you do pay, there is no guarantee they will destroy the content. It is, in fact, likely that they will continue to ask for more money knowing that you have paid in the past and likely will again.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Cut off all communication:&nbsp;These criminals will take any communication as an indication that you might be persuaded to accept their blackmail demands in the future, and so they will only continue to make more and more vile arguments and demands in hopes of breaking your will. They will also prey on your emotional state, and you may end up breaking, so it is best to close the chat and block them immediately and any other accounts they create to circumvent the blocking.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Get support:&nbsp;This is a criminal act, and the police are there to help you. You should contact them immediately for help. However, this might not be all the support you need or deserve. Seeking counseling to understand your victimhood and how to mentally recover from such trauma can be key to getting back to your life.</li>
</ul>
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<h2>How can you prevent sextortion?</h2>
With most cybercrime, it is just about being a difficult target. Criminals are going to act in nefarious ways, but you don&rsquo;t need to be the victim. There are some commonsense actions you can take to make it more difficult for would-be criminals to exploit you online.
For example, you should always be careful with whom you chat online. Before sharing sexually explicit materials, take time to consider who you are chatting with and whether you can trust them.
You should also make sure to employ the latest security measures. <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-with-2fa">Two-factor analysis</a> and <a href="about:blank">biometrics</a> can increase your safety online. Using unique and complicated passwords for every site is also an important measure.
In our quest to become more secure, passwords become less and less easy to remember. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of securely remembering your passwords while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.

This article explains what sextortion is, how it happens, and how to reduce your risk of becoming a victim of sextortion. | TeamPassword

This article explains what sextortion is, how it happens, and how to reduce your risk of becoming a ...

What Is Sextortion and How Can You Prevent It?

Passwords are currently integral to security measures. That has been true for many years now. However, passwords cause many problems. They are hard to remember, and we are required to know too many of them&mdash;sometimes even hundreds. In addition, they can be stolen and leaked on the dark web. Those two sentences combined cause even more trouble.&nbsp;
When you need to know many hard-to-remember passwords&mdash;after all, the simple ones are easy to crack via <a href="about:blank">brute force attacks</a>&mdash;you might be inclined to take shortcuts. That might be <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">password reuse</a> or <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/should-i-use-my-browsers-built-in-password-manager">relying on risky storage methods</a> to keep track of all your credentials.
Indeed, passwords have become the single biggest threat to online security. The increasing complexity of passwords leads to people reusing them, hackers are becoming more adept at stealing them, and the data found online makes it increasingly profitable to commit cybercrimes. This is a recipe for disaster, and something needs to be done for there to be a secure future of passwords.
If all of this weren&rsquo;t worrisome enough, companies are using more and more cloud and online services, which require their employees to share login credentials across a greater ecosystem of software, all of which is vulnerable to attacks.
Despite all this, usernames are now often just your email address, meaning hackers only need to find your password since the username is intrinsically linked to you. So what is the future of passwords? Well, different experts have different opinions, and it is hard to say who will be proven right. Our guess is that it will be a combination of some or all of the solutions described in this article, as well as some truly unexpected technological breakthroughs.&nbsp;
In our quest to become more secure, passwords become less and less easy to remember. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of securely remembering your passwords while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.
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<h2>The advantages and disadvantages of passwords</h2>
Are passwords doomed to the dustbin of history, or do they still have some redeeming qualities? Like all security solutions, passwords have both advantages and disadvantages.
<h3>Password advantages</h3>
Passwords are easy to implement using software. They are also very cheap to run. Unlike two-factor authentication, biometrics, or any of the other advanced systems discussed below, the only real costs are the implementation. There is no fancy hardware or software to maintain over time.&nbsp;
In addition, users can delete or modify passwords easily, which is not always possible with other solutions. (Random shower thought: If your company uses facial recognition, would they pay for Botox if you called it &ldquo;updating your login credentials&rdquo;?)
<h3>Password disadvantages</h3>
Simply put, the entire concept of passwords is flawed. Anything easy enough to remember is going to be hacked so quickly that it isn&rsquo;t really a security feature at all. Conversely, any password actually strong enough to keep a hacker out is difficult to remember.&nbsp;
Remembering multiple passwords of that strength is nearly impossible, which leads to reuse. Since any individual site could be hacked, using the same password across many sites leaves you extremely vulnerable. Your bank or company probably has an impressive security system, but if you use the same credentials for a random chat board, then you are essentially reducing your banker or employer&rsquo;s security level to that of the least secured site you frequent.&nbsp;
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<h2>The future of passwords</h2>
What is the future of passwords? Well, first of all, we should be asking: What are the futures of passwords? Indeed, even the definition of "password" is going to be complicated in the future as every site will mean something different.&nbsp;
Some sites will use two-factor authentication (<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-with-2fa">2FA</a>), while others will use a <a href="about:blank">passwordless</a> system. Some devices will be dealing with <a href="about:blank">biometrics</a>, while others passphrases. Some users will prefer <a href="about:blank">single-sign-on (SSO)</a>, while others will stick to the proven security and convenience of a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/whats-the-best-small-business-password-manager">password manager</a>.
Below, we will describe just a few of the many advances that you will see as part of the future of passwords:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two-factor authentication</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Passphrases</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Single sign-on</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Passwordless</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Zero login</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password managers</li>
</ul>
Don't let your company fall victim to extortion emails, credential stuffing, and other password vulnerabilities. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of security while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.
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<h2>Two-factor authentication (2FA)</h2>
Two-factor authentication is basically what it sounds like&mdash;instead of using a single authentication step involving your username and password, there is a second step where you provide further credentials.&nbsp;
The most common system for 2FA includes an SMS message to your phone number. Once you type in your username and password, the system sends you a text message with a one-time password (OTP), usually a six-digit number code, to type in during the second authentication step.&nbsp;
This has mostly replaced an older version of 2FA where you provided questions and answers to prove you are who you say you are because they were vulnerable to social engineering. That is, malicious actors could figure out your first pet&rsquo;s name, your childhood best friend, or the street you grew up on and then waltz through this second step of authentication.
While 2FA with SMS codes has helped reduce the risks of brute force or dictionary attacks, a new attack arose to break through the SMS step. Indeed, hackers have found ways to port phone numbers to a different SIM card without the owner&rsquo;s permission to harvest these 2FA codes.
That is why secure 2FA OTPs are now sent to authentication apps, the most popular being Microsoft&rsquo;s app called Authenticator.&nbsp;
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<h2>Passphrases</h2>
Passphrases are, in essence, many long passwords. Instead of writing the password &ldquo;dog,&rdquo; you pick the phrase &ldquo;I walk my dog Sparky,&rdquo; which might be written without spaces as &ldquo;iwalkmydogsparky.&rdquo; The sheer length of the passphrase makes it more secure than the base password while not being harder to remember.&nbsp;
In the future of passwords, allowing for longer password lengths to accommodate passphrases is a very simple-to-implement and low-cost step in higher security. Unfortunately, many sites still limit the length of passwords to 12 characters.
Passphrases can also be adapted similarly to normal passwords by changing the capitalization of different letters, adding numbers and characters, etc. For example, &ldquo;iwalkmydogsparky&rdquo; can then be changed to &ldquo;1.w4lk-My_d0g=Sp4rKy&rdquo;.
The benefit of passphrases is that, even though they are very long and hard to guess, they are often quite easy to remember compared to a random set of letters, numbers, and characters.
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<h2>Single sign-on (SSO)</h2>
The single-sign-on system allows users to use a single set of credentials once to use many separate services. This is done by all the services having trust relationships. As you move from one secure site to another, the <a href="about:blank">SSO</a> system passes tokens behind the scenes to confirm you have permission to enter the site.&nbsp;
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<h2>Passwordless</h2>
Passwords have gone from the entirety of digital security to its greatest liability. This has led many people to argue the future of passwords should be no passwords at all. <a href="about:blank">Biometrics</a> has been at the forefront of the <a href="about:blank">passwordless</a> revolution. Fingerprints and/or facial recognition are increasingly used by portable devices such as smartphones.&nbsp;
It is likely that passwordless solutions will be a part of any login ecosystem of the future. Whether using SSO or 2FA, biometrics are likely to be part of the future of passwords.
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<h2>Zero Login</h2>
Some companies might do away with logins entirely. While your bank might actually call you when you try to log in from a new IP, Amazon is currently testing systems that will measure your typing speed and pressure to constantly confirm your identity while you use their site.
In these systems, the goal is to confirm your identity constantly through behavioral means and then only ask a password when the system detects anomalies in how you type, search, etc. In this case, only hackers will be prompted for passwords.
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<h2>Password managers</h2>
While the future of passwords is diverse systems designed to keep you more secure while not taxing your brain remembering a longer and longer list of more and more complex passwords, passwords will not disappear entirely.&nbsp;
These complex passwords&mdash;and a new one for every site&mdash;are paramount to your security. For now, the best solution is a very secure and user-friendly password manager that takes all the difficulty out of using passwords.
The best way to secure your IT infrastructure is to use a password manager that includes sharing features. A password manager like TeamPassword offers high-level encryption and two-factor authentication so that only the right people can make sense of the passwords.
Before anyone can access the list of shared passwords, they must log in to the platform using their personal password and a short-term authentication code.
Teams often need to share passwords to access mutual accounts, including Wi-Fi. However, you don't have to put your data at risk to make this possible. You can use<a href="https://teampassword.com/"> TeamPassword</a> to securely generate, store, and share Wi-Fi passwords within a team.&nbsp;
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If you&rsquo;re unsure where to begin, <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">sign up for a TeamPassword free trial</a> to secure your shared passwords once and for all.

This article explains the future of passwords, the types of passwords that will be used in the future, and passwordless security.

This article explains the future of passwords, the types of passwords that will be used in the future, ...

What Is the Future of Passwords?

Team Password Blog | Author timothy-ware | Page 1

Over the last decade, the gig economy boom has allowed professionals worldwide to switch to freelancing and build a network of international clients.&nbsp;
According to Upwork, 1 in 3 US workers engaged in freelance work during 2020. Some of the most successful freelancers earn hundreds of thousands of dollars per year through platforms like Upwork, Freelancer, and Toptal.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
Does your company hire freelancers? How do you <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/should-i-share-data-with-freelancers">share passwords with freelancers</a>? TeamPassword is an affordable password management solution for small businesses, startups, and agencies to share credentials securely with team members and freelancers. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h2>10 Successful Freelancers</h2>
Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field with excellent track records&mdash;many have worked with the biggest companies in the world!
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>1. Marcos Rezende - UX designer - Canada</h3>
Marcos Rezende is a UX Designer from Ontario, Canada, with more than 13 years of experience. Marcos has worked in over 30 industry sectors for multinational organizations in the United States, Canada, Germany, and Brazil.&nbsp;
Some of Marcos' notable projects include apps for Ontario's COVID-19 dashboard, Urban Master Planning collaboration platform, and Reaction (kid's e-learning app), to name a few.&nbsp;
Marcos loves sharing his industry expertise with aspiring UX designers and regularly writes for the popular UX publication Career Foundry. Total recognizes Marcos as part of its "Top 3%" of global freelancer talent&mdash;a title given to elite freelancers in their given field.
We don't have access to Marcos' rates, but the best UX designers on Upwork earn upwards of $100 per hour. As a Toptal Top 3% freelancer, Marcos likely charges $200-$300 per hour.
<a href="https://www.marcosrezende.com/">Marcos Rezende's website</a> was nominated for the prestigious <a href="https://www.awwwards.com/sites/ux-portfolio-marcos-rezende">awwwards.</a> in 2021.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>2. Kathy Edens - Marketing Consultant / Freelance Copywriter - United States</h3>
<a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~016177d19f0624c1a7?viewMode=1">Kathy Edens is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with over $300k platform earnings! Kathy has been self-employed as a marketing consultant and freelance copywriter for almost ten years from her home in Ohio, United States.
She holds a Bachelor of Science in Professional Writing and Psychology from Oregon State University, which she says "...helps me understand how to reach your target audience with words."&nbsp;
Kathy has ghost-written several non-fiction books on various topics, including social entrepreneurship, healthcare, real estate investing, and the cannabis industry, to name a few.
Kathy also writes web content, sales pages, email marketing content, case studies, white papers, brochures, press releases, and more. Kathy's rates start at $86 per hour for her writing and marketing services.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h3>3. Koen van Oeveren - UX designer - Netherlands</h3>
Koen van Oeveren is a freelance UI &amp; UX designer from North Brabant, Netherlands, with almost ten years of experience. Koen works with several design agencies in the Netherlands, designing apps, websites, and eCommerce experiences for many international brands.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
Koen holds a Bachelor of Applied Science in Communication and Multimedia Design from Avans University in the Netherlands. Koen's <a href="https://www.koenvo.com/index.html">portfolio website Koenvo</a> was nominated for a <a href="https://www.awwwards.com/sites/koenvo-ui-ux-portfolio">2021 awwwards. Award</a>.
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<h3>4. Pascal Strasche - Product / UX designer - Germany</h3>
Pascal Strasche is a product and UX designer with more than ten years of design experience from Germany. He holds a Master of Arts in Interaction Design and a Bachelor of Arts in Graphic Design, both from HAWK University of Applied Sciences and Arts.
For almost a year over 2020/2021, Pascal worked as the sole product designer to design Con Cubo's SaaS tool that helps complex organizations visualize and manage teams. He's also worked with German steel giant XOM Materials to find product solutions to digitalize&nbsp;Germany's steel industry.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
In 2019, Pascal founded Product Design Resources, a growing archive of 800+ design resources, weekly updated for the design community.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>5. Paul Hunkin - Developer - New Zealand</h3>
Paul Hunkin is a freelance software consultant and developer from Tauranga, New Zealand, but currently living in Portugal.&nbsp;
Paul has over ten years of experience as a software developer with an impressive work history, including Google, NASA, InfoSys, and the Chinese aerospace industry leader COMAC.
He's worked with several early-stage startups designing everything from high-performance big-data systems to complex web applications to 3D rendering engines. He's also built a lot of the foundational code for independent games on Android.&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
Paul is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer with over $400k in platform earnings. His rates start at $120 per hour for software development. <a href="https://paulh.consulting/">Check out Paul's website</a> for more about his impressive portfolio and work history.
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<h3>6. Jana Galat - Writer / Brand Strategist - Canada</h3>
Jana Galat is a freelance copywriter and brand strategist from Ontario, Canada. She holds a Bachelor's Degree in Management and Organizational Studies from King's University College and an Honors in Business Administration from Western University.
Jana has extensive experience writing landing pages, email campaigns, social media ads, and print materials and says, "I am obsessed with creating copy that sells..."
After several years of professional work experience, Jana went freelance in 2019 and has quickly built a reputation as a <a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~01bfa17a48301876dd">Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with over $70k in platform earnings. Jana's rates start at $100 per hour for copywriting and brand consulting.
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<h3>7. Kate H. - Logo Designer / Branding Expert - United States</h3>
Kate is a freelance professional logo designer and branding expert from Maryland, United States. Kate&nbsp;ran her own green wedding brand which she sold to mywedding.com in 2014, allowing her to focus on helping small&nbsp;businesses figure out what they want (and who they are) and translate that into design.
She holds a Master's degree in Environmental Management from Yale School of The Environmental, and a J.D. in environmental law from Pace Law School.&nbsp;
Kate's skillset includes redesigning and updating material to make it easier to understand, building a consistent brand from a simple starting point like a logo, and creating unique logos that guarantee results.
Kate is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer, and her rates start at $225 per hour. You can find out more about Kate on her <a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~013ce73876c1c18126" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Upwork profile</a>.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>8. Xhensila Zemblaku - Art Director - Canada</h3>
Xhensila Zemblaku is a freelance art director, UX/UI designer, and illustrator from Markham, Canada. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Ryerson University with almost ten years of experience.
Xhensila has been a freelancer for most of her professional career and earned over <a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~01a08d1fcc6ea8fbcb">$400k on Upwork</a>, completed over 150 jobs, and 4,663 hours!&nbsp;
Xhensila's work includes typography, print design, UX/UI design, web, and mobile design. She's a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer currently charging $200 per hour for various creative gigs.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>9. Tanya Litvinova - UX/UI Designer - United States</h3>
Tanya Litvinova is a freelance UX/UI designer from New York City, United States. She holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Advertising Design / Communication Design from the Fashion Institute of Technology.
Tanya specializes in product, mobile, and web design as well as user experience flow, research, and validation.
"I have a passion to make the complex simple, shape behavior, design, plan, and strategize. Aiming for the best user experience, all the while balancing the needs of business and technology to create engaging, habit-forming digital products."
Tanya has worked with Fortune 100 &amp; Fortune 500 companies and successfully delivered business-transforming data-driven analytics, responsive BI dashboards, enterprise web apps, and management systems. Some of Tanya's notable clients include KOCH Industries, BlackRock Financial, BCG Group, and FireEye, to name a few.
<a href="https://www.upwork.com/freelancers/~0165035041b26e96df">Tanya is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer</a> with more than $200k platform earnings. Her current rate starts at $162.50 per hour.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>10. Guangming Lang - Data Scientist - United States</h3>
Guangming Lang is a freelance data scientist from Michigan, United States. He holds a Bachelor of Arts in Mathematics from New College of Florida and a Master of Science in Biostatistics from the University of Michigan. Guangming has also completed several Coursera courses in data science and machine learning.
Guangming has been a freelancer since 2013 and has worked across several industries, including fintech, trading, medicine, biotech, advertising, and HR.&nbsp;
Guangming is a Top Rated Upwork Freelancer with over $400k in platform earnings. He's completed 216 jobs on Upwork totaling 3,805 hours! Guangming's current rates start at $200 per hour.
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<h2>Secure Freelancer Workflows With TeamPassword</h2>
No matter how talented or reputable the freelancers and contractors you hire, your company must use secure workflows to protect your digital assets.
Freelancers often need access to shared accounts and tools. Using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager</a> is the first step to securing these accounts and platforms. You can also use a password manager to share credentials with employees, clients, and other stakeholders to ensure you never expose raw passwords via email, spreadsheets, chat apps, and other non-secure methods.
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> lets you create groups to share access with only those who need it. When they're done, revoke access with a single click. No need to change passwords every time someone leaves the team.
If you do need to change a password, TeamPassword's built-in <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">password generator</a> lets you create secure passwords between 12-32 characters using numbers, letters (uppercase/lowercase), and symbols.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
Ready to onboard clients and freelancers securely with TeamPassword's robust <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password management solution</a>? <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a free trial</a> to secure your company's digital assets today!

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field.

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in ...

10 extremely successful freelancers and what they do

Here are ten successful freelancers and what they do. These freelancers have earned their place as experts in their given field with excellent track records—many have worked with the biggest companies in the world!

Usernames are essential for security and anonymity online. But some people come up with username ideas to stand out or align with a brand. Usernames can also help gain followers or build a social media following.
With so many possibilities, coming up with username ideas can be challenging! Luckily, there are plenty of tools and methods to create unique usernames.
Whether you're aiming for fame or privacy, we have username ideas to help you create unique usernames easily!
Using unique credentials (including passwords and usernames) can mitigate many cybersecurity vulnerabilities. When paired with a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager like TeamPassword</a>, strong usernames and passwords can protect you against attacks. Sign up for a 14-day free TeamPassword trial today!
&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h2>Why You Need to Use Unique Usernames</h2>
There are several reasons people want unique usernames ideas:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Security</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Anonymity</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Popularity</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Humor</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Business name ideas</li>
</ul>
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h3>Unique Usernames for Security</h3>
Many people don't know about the importance of using unique or secure usernames for online security. Reusing usernames can be just as troublesome as <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reusing passwords</a>.
If criminals steal your credentials from a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/category/data-breaches">data breach</a>, they can use your username to figure out where else you have accounts and deploy spear-phishing attacks using fake correspondence to steal your credentials.
For example, hackers sending you a "password reset" from Instagram because they "suspect suspicious activity!" If you use unique usernames for every account, the attackers won't find your Instagram profile!
Don't think that you won't fall for these ploys! Many individuals with regular cybersecurity training fall victim to phishing attacks.
In effect, unique usernames act as a second password, preventing anyone from finding your accounts with a single username.
&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h3>Unique Usernames for Anonymity</h3>
Aligned with security is anonymity. Maintaining anonymity online can protect you from cyberattacks and prevent work colleagues, clients, and other companies or individuals from finding you online.
Many people want to separate their professional profiles from their personal ones while maintaining an online presence. Using unique usernames can hide the profiles you prefer to keep private.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Unique Usernames for Fame, Popularity, Attention</h3>
A good Instagram username can help you stand out and boost your online presence. If your username is unique or obscure, it could lead to more profile clicks and followers.
A good example is French Connection UK or @FCUK. At first glance, the username looks like an expletive, drawing people's attention to the brand.
People often use made-up words, obscure combinations, and other naming conventions to grab attention online.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Unique Usernames for Humor</h3>
Humor is another reason people often want unique username ideas. For example, @PickledElephantTusk is sure to get people's attention and perhaps a chuckle at the ridiculousness.
Funny usernames are great for social media profiles, but you might want to avoid these if you're trying to aim for security or anonymity!
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Business Name Ideas</h3>
Most startups want a unique brand name, including URL and social media usernames. Startups can ensure that every digital touchpoint is unique to their brand by choosing an available unique username first.
While using the same username is necessary for branding on social media channels, companies should always choose different, unidentifiable usernames for non-public accounts&mdash;email marketing apps, keyword research tools, productivity tools, accounting apps, etc.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h2>How Can You Get Unique Usernames Ideas?</h2>
There are many places you go for unique username ideas. Here are a few of our best sources for inspiration:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Pinterest</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Username generators</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Google Search - type a word and look through the autocompletes. This is also an excellent way to find trending usernames</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Instagram hashtags</li>
</ul>
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h2>Here are a Couple of Methods for Thinking of Great Usernames Ideas</h2>
If you're looking for inspiration, here are three methods for coming up with great username ideas. We've included processes for creativity, speed, and security.
<h3>Creating Your Own Unique Usernames</h3>
The best way to create unique username ideas is by combining two or three mismatched words with a number. First, come up with two or three categories, and then pick a word from each.
For example, let&rsquo;s choose the two categories fish, and US State:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">US State: Idaho</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Fish: Pufferfish</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Number: 13</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">@IdahoPufferfish13</li>
</ul>
You can come up with funny and cute usernames using this method. It's also a fantastic creative exercise some people might find entertaining.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Use a Username Generator</h3>
If you don't want to waste time coming up with usernames yourself, a username generator is a fantastic option to create unique usernames fast!
Some username generator tools will let you add a prefix, suffix, or number and randomize the rest. This method works well if you're trying to find unique username ideas for a specific industry, like fitness, health, tech, etc.
Some username generators even provide a social media search function to see if your unique username is available on the relevant platforms&mdash;providing you speed and efficiency!
Random username generators are also excellent for security because you avoid familiarity, making it less likely for attackers to find you.
&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h3>Use a Password Generator</h3>
Password generators are great for creating unique username ideas. Password generators produce random strings with letters and numbers, significantly reducing the possibility of someone identifying you.
Try creating a username with TeamPassword's password generator:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Visit our <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">free password generator</a></li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Deselect symbols (most platforms don't allow symbols in the username. Keep this selected if your platform does allow it!)</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Our password generator only allows a minimum of 12 characters. If you need a shorter user name, drop the characters you don't need</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Copy/paste your random username to use when signing up for a new account</li>
</ol>
Remember to use our password generator with uppercase, lowercase, symbols, and numbers to create a secure unique password.&nbsp;
TeamPassword's password manager features a built-in password generator that suggests and pastes a strong password into forms during signup or resets. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a free 14-day free trial</a> to start managing your usernames and passwords securely.
&nbsp; &nbsp;&nbsp;
<h2>How You Can Secure Your Accounts Using a Password Manager</h2>
Usernames and passwords are the keys to your individual and company accounts. These credentials prevent attackers from breaching your devices, networks, social media, apps, financial services, and more.
Most companies have hundreds of accounts requiring authentication daily. Often team members need to share access, especially for social media, research tools, productivity apps, store accounts, and marketing tools, to name a few.
<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/secure-password-sharing">Sharing credentials</a> over email, chat, or via spreadsheets exposes your company, clients, employees, and users to many cybersecurity risks. In some states and countries, sharing passwords this way is illegal!
Using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager</a> is a secure and efficient way to store and share your company's credentials.
Here are five reasons to choose TeamPassword for your company:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Affordable - Enterprise-grade password managers are often expensive. TeamPassword provides small businesses, agencies, and startups with an affordable password management solution.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Secure - TeamPassword is an <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/what-is-password-encryption-and-how-much-is-enough">accredited secure hosting provider</a> using state-of-the-art encryption technology. We store your passwords using AES-256, trusted by US government agencies and many other organizations globally.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Efficient - Share and revoke access in TeamPassword with a single click. Quickly create passwords using our built-in <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">secure password generator</a>.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Scalable - TeamPassword's plans scale with your business. Start with as few as five members and upgrade your plan as your workforce expands.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Flexible - Employees can sign into accounts using TeamPassword's Chrome, Firefox, or Safari browser extensions&mdash;catering to both Apple and Windows users.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
</ol>
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h2>Password Management With TeamPassword</h2>
TeamPassword makes it easy and secure to share credentials with employees, clients, freelancers, and contractors. Everyone gets a separate TeamPassword login to manage access and monitor activity.
TeamPassword encrypts your passwords, making it impossible for employees (or even TeamPassword staff) to preview raw credentials.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Sharing Access With Groups</h3>
Add your team to TeamPassword and create groups to share access to your various accounts. If an employee, contractor, or freelancer leaves the team, simply remove them from the group&mdash;no need to worry about changing passwords!
If you're an agency working with multiple clients and accounts, one TeamPassword account is all you need! Just increase your plan accordingly.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Activity Logging</h3>
Keep track of TeamPassword activity, just like an enterprise password manager does. Monitor logins, password changes, credential sharing, and more to spot suspicious activity.
TeamPassword also lets you set up email notifications&mdash;helpful in monitoring sensitive accounts or specific actions, like sharing or adding new users.
&nbsp; &nbsp;
<h3>Two-Factor Authentication (2FA)</h3>
Enabling 2FA on your TeamPassword account prevents attackers from gaining access, even if they steal your employee's username and password.
TeamPassword uses the Google Authenticator app (iOS &amp; Android), requiring a six-digital randomly generated code as the second authentication step. Without the employee's device, hackers can't complete TeamPassword authentication.
&nbsp; &nbsp; &nbsp;
<h2>Start With a Free Trial</h2>
Coming up with unique username ideas isn't enough to protect your company's digital assets from attack. Protect your company's usernames and passwords with <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a>.
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test our robust and efficient sharing features with your team today!

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