In an increasingly digital world, we&rsquo;re switching more and more of our daily lives over to the Internet. While this brave new world is exciting and convenient, it&rsquo;s not without its problems.&nbsp;
The issue of unsafe passwords has been around for a while. But have you ever thought about where and how to store them?
Most of us have several passwords, and we&rsquo;re encouraged to never duplicate them. Some people simply write them all down on a piece of paper &mdash; which is fraught with danger. But others store their passwords electronically.
As you&rsquo;re about to find out, not all electronic systems of password storage are <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/10-things-you-need-to-do-to-keep-passwords-safe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">safe</a>. Here are five of the most dangerous ways to store your passwords.&nbsp;
But before we begin:
Avoid bad idea passwords and dangerous storage methods with TeamPassword. This advanced <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/why-you-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password manager</a> features a selection of security features, including password encryption and two-step verification. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">free trial</a> today.&nbsp;

<h2>1. Email</h2>
Have you ever emailed yourself a password to ensure you&rsquo;re never without it? Great idea, right? Actually, emailing yourself your passwords is a really bad idea, and here&rsquo;s why:
<ul>
<li>Emails are usually sent in plain text. Without encryption, your passwords are susceptible if your email account is ever compromised.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Unsafe passwords sent via email often pass through several systems and servers. There&rsquo;ll also be a copy in your sent folder. If someone else can access your email account, your passwords become vulnerable.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Some email platforms store data locally on a drive. If someone steals your computer, phone, or tablet, your passwords become vulnerable.</li>
</ul>
A really bad idea for passwords is to send them via email &mdash; either to yourself or someone else. <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/have-i-been-hacked-how-to-know-for-sure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hackers </a>and scammers are more resourceful than ever, and they can often steal your information before you realize you&rsquo;ve been compromised.&nbsp;
It&rsquo;s tempting to send a quick email to yourself containing unsafe passwords when you sign up for new online services. For the sake of an extra minute or two, don&rsquo;t give fraudsters easy access to your accounts. Use an encrypted email vault to safeguard all your passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>2. Online Documents</h2>
A lot of people like the convenience of saving crucial information using online document systems such as Google Docs. But this is a bad idea for passwords, as these systems are designed for text &mdash; not sensitive data.
Yes, a password might protect your online document manager from unauthorized access. But what happens if that password is compromised? Many document software platforms don&rsquo;t offer encryption, two-step verification, or even the most basic security measures.&nbsp;
If you use online documents regularly, you&rsquo;re probably accessing your account on a regular basis &mdash; across several devices. What happens if you step away for a moment to buy a coffee, speak to a friend, or use the bathroom?
A criminal can access an unattended online document platform in seconds. And if this happens, it doesn't take a lot of effort to steal your unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>3. Instant Messaging Service</h2>
Instant messaging services provide us with a convenient way of staying in touch with friends and family. WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Snapchat were designed for private online conversations &mdash; not for storing passwords.
People who store their passwords on these apps do so because they believe they&rsquo;re fully encrypted. While that&rsquo;s often the case, it&rsquo;s important to remember that instant messaging services are often left open and operating in the background.
Imagine someone picks up your phone while you&rsquo;re not paying attention. If you left your device unlocked, that person would be able to access your password in seconds.
It&rsquo;s always a bad idea when passwords are stored on instant messaging services. By nature, these apps are designed to operate in the background &mdash; alerting you when someone sends a message. And because they&rsquo;re open, anyone with the device in their hand might be able to steal your unprotected passwords.&nbsp;
Don&rsquo;t fall into the trap of utilizing bad ideas for password storage. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> with TeamPassword, and give your unsafe passwords the protection they require.
<h2>4. Online Note-taker</h2>
Developers design online note-takers for everyday lists and reminders. While they&rsquo;re great for creating to-do and shopping lists, they&rsquo;re not so good for storing unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
An app such as Apple Notes is easy to use, accessible, and convenient. But it doesn&rsquo;t offer two-step authentication, encryption, or any sophisticated form of security.&nbsp;
If your computer or mobile device is unlocked, your saved passwords are vulnerable. In many cases, a criminal would simply need to open the app to gain access to your sensitive information.&nbsp;
OK, you might be extra vigilant when it comes to keeping your phone or computer locked. But hackers are resourceful, and they&rsquo;re very good at discovering unsafe passwords. Once they access your phone, any passwords stored in your note-taking app become vulnerable.&nbsp;
<h2>5. On a Non-Password-Protected Device</h2>
Of all the bad ideas for passwords, storing them on non-password-protected devices is about the worst. You might think that your tablet or laptop never leaves your side. But if your device is ever stolen, you&rsquo;ve given the criminals the easiest possible opportunity to access your saved passwords.&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re determined to store passwords on a physical device &mdash; which is never a good idea &mdash; make sure the device password is a complex combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. And it should contain at least 12 characters.&nbsp;
<h2>Use TeamPassword for Extra Protection</h2>
Remembering and safely storing a dozen or more passwords isn&rsquo;t a simple task. By locking away all your passwords in a digital vault, you get maximum protection and easy access.&nbsp;
TeamPassword offers a range of <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/security" target="_blank" rel="noopener">security features</a> &mdash; designed to keep your passwords safe. Offering two-step authentication and encryption, this powerful protection system solves the problem of unsafe passwords with ease. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> to see these exciting features for yourself.&nbsp;

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. | TeamPassword Blog

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. ...

Top 5 Dangerous Ways to Store Your Passwords

If you're tech-savvy enough to have a personal password manager on your own computer, you know why a company would want a password manager for their corporate teams. Passwords are often a point of confusion among business people; namely, why do we need so many? With work teams, this becomes compounded.
With the engineering team, for example, each individual could share a Google doc or Google sheet, only to accidentally or inadvertently share it with a non-team member or even someone outside the company. Worse yet, someone from the Accounting Department could use an easily guessable password, leaving your company vulnerable to external and internal threats.
TeamPassword allows businesses to create passwords and restrict them to only the people needing access to distinct applications and systems. This makes sharing information easier, controllable, and&mdash;with <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/one-time-passwords-vs-two-factor-authentication" target="_blank" rel="noopener">two-factor authentication</a> and AES 256 bit encryption&mdash;as secure as is technologically possible.&nbsp;
If you would like to try TeamPassword for yourself click to start a&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a>.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<h2>What is Password Guessing</h2>
You would hope that every individual in your company would use a password manager, and every password they use would be 32 characters in length. But the world of passwords is not perfect, as we often find out the hard way.&nbsp;For example:&nbsp;recently, a hack of software company SolarWinds has been prominent in the news. Hackers used some very sophisticated techniques, and one not so sophisticated:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/cisa-solarwinds-hackers-also-used-password-guessing-to-breach-targets/#:~:text=%22CISA%20incident%20response%20invest" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password guessing</a>.
What is password guessing?&nbsp;Just as the name implies.&nbsp;Employees who use easy-to-remember passwords also often use the same password for multiple applications. If a hacker guesses the password they can gain access to your account. The risk of peoples personal devices being compromised is higher, now that&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/common-password-problems-faced-small-organizations" target="_blank" rel="noopener">70 percent of employees use their own devices for business</a>. Although it is convenient and cost-effective, the "Bring-Your-Own-Device" model does not promote access to or control over employees&rsquo; password choices. This could be problematic and dangerous for the enterprise.&nbsp;
<h2>How Does a Password Manager for Teams Work?</h2>
For customers of TeamPassword, team members receive an invitation through an email link, and their&nbsp;passwords are stored in a secure cloud.&nbsp;You can give them access to only the applications and systems for which they&nbsp;are approved, and you can turn off access&nbsp;at any time.&nbsp;The administrator will also receive alerts whenever there is activity in the password manager environment so that they can monitor logins and access.&nbsp;All activity is logged, so the administrator has transparency into what&rsquo;s happening at all times.
It's easy to generate a unique password for every login, and there is no need to remember multiple passwords. The user only needs to remember the master password.
<h2>Important TeamPassword Features</h2>
When you use TeamPassword, you benefit from some of the most advanced features in the industry, for instance:
<ul>
<li>Accessible anywhere from any device, including mobile devices. Team members have 24/7 access.</li>
<li>Chrome, Safari, and Firefox extensions for more speed. Browser extensions let the user access TeamPassword quickly and securely with fewer keystrokes.</li>
<li>Scalable.&nbsp;Use TeamPassword to keep all your passwords in one place. It doesn't matter how many passwords your company has or how many team members you invite. TeamPassword can handle them all.</li>
<li>The Secure Password Generator allows for automatic creation of randomized and secure passwords. TeamPassword always chooses passwords formatted to be the most difficult to hack.</li>
<li>Optional two-step verification. Some companies require only a single login, but for those who want an additional layer of protection, two-step verification is available.</li>
<li>Activity logging and email alerts because transparency is vital to the administrator. With logging and alerts, they can avoid unpleasant surprises.</li>
<li>Military-grade AES 256 bit encryption.&nbsp;Nothing is sent over the internet without first being encrypted, and the TeamPassword encryption standard is the highest available.</li>
<li>Small &amp; large business useibility. At TeamPassword, our solution can be both used for small and large businesses. We have the expertise to serve both sizes with the dedication to make your company more secure. You need to make sure all of your passwords are <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/why-do-i-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">secure</a>, and Team Password is the best way to do that.</li>
</ul>
TeamPassword offers a 14-day free trial. Try all the features and benefits Team Password can offer by clicking <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">here</a>.

Learn why you need a password manager. The features that TeamPassword can offer for your personal use and your company use. |TeamPassword

Learn why you need a password manager. The features that TeamPassword can offer for your personal use and ...

Why You Need a Password Manager

When we think about staying secure online, passwords are often the first thing that come to mind. After all, we use them to login to just about every service, from our email inbox to social media platforms. However, new methods of authentication are transforming the way we access digital interfaces.
We all can empathize with the frustration of forgetting a password and having to reset it for the tenth time, and with experts advising unique, complex passwords for every account you hold, achieving both convenience and security can seem hopeless. Fortunately, tools like TeamPassword make striking this balance easy.
Of course, while using&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="follow noopener">TeamPassword</a> can help you consistently use (and remember) more secure passwords, what does the future hold? Are we moving towards passwordless authentication, or will they always play a role in our security?
To get started protecting your self today click <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">here</a> to get your free trial.
<h3>Table of Contents:</h3>
<ol>
<li>What Would Passwordless Mean for Users?</li>
<li>Do Businesses Need Passwordless Authentication?</li>
<li>Simplify Your Password Management</li>
</ol>
<h2>What Would Passwordless Mean for Users?</h2>
How much time would you save if you didn't have to remember and enter a password for every account you access? With the&nbsp;introduction&nbsp;of Touch ID, Face ID, and other authentication systems, everyday users have quickly backed the passwordless movement. Of course, while these methods work for consumers' personal devices, businesses require scaled up solutions that are much more complex.
As a business, the question really comes down to whether or not passwordless is feasible right now. For most, it's something their working towards &mdash; and it has a bigger business impact than some may think.
In the IT world, the pursuit of passwordless authentication means a lot. For starters, it implies increased security while,&nbsp;at the&nbsp;same&nbsp;time,&nbsp;greatly&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/why-do-i-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">reducing the administrative work</a> of IT professionals.
For those not in the IT world, just spend a moment considering how much time these professionals spend helping recover passwords, ensuring secure passwords, and other password management practices and protocols within their organization.
Since 2019, the amount of&nbsp;time professionals spend managing user passwords <a href="https://blog.lastpass.com/2020/10/lastpass-research-finds-92-of-businesses-believe-passwordless-authentication-is-in-their-organizations-future/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">has increased by an astounding 25%</a>. This represents a great deal of work hours being spent on critical but monotonous activity and being able to eliminate those tasks is the dream of many employees in the IT space. A password manager like <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="follow noopener">TeamPassword</a> can help save those countless hours.
<h2>Do Businesses Need Passwordless Authentication?</h2>
Almost <a href="https://www.helpnetsecurity.com/2020/10/02/is-passwordless-authentication-actually-the-future/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">9 in 10 professionals</a> in the IT world don't believe that the password as we know it will ever go away entirely. However, the same number of professionals agree that&nbsp;we need a combination of password management strategies and passwordless authentication to maintain security and simplify IT administration.
When implemented, passwordless authentication solutions result in fewer passwords being used or needed. That reduction can do wonders for simplifying the employee or user experience, and improve security at the same time. However, with passwords still engrained in most security practices, the right <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/6-steps-to-using-a-team-password-manager-for-your-small-business" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password management strategy</a> is also essential.
If you ask employees, around 92% feel that their organization is on the road to a passwordless user experience. That alone shows the growing need for simple and secure authentication methods. Other factors, like an increasing number of people working from home, are also contributing to this need for more seamless, user-friendly security.
<h2>Simplify Your Password Management</h2>
Passwords aren't going away soon, so what can your business do in the meantime to help reduce friction, improve user compliance, and make managing secure passwords easier for everyone? As you move down the path towards passwordless authentication, you should&nbsp;be investing in <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/why-should-i-use-a-password-generator" target="_blank" rel="noopener">modern tools.</a> This helps your business both manage passwords as they are and puts you on the road to advanced authentication methods.
TeamPassword is the easiest, fastest, and most secure way to store and manage the passwords of all of your team members. No more spreadsheets or self-managed databases. With TeamPassword, login information is stored in the cloud where it's highly encrypted, ultra safe, and always in-sync.
Instead of allowing your users to figure out their own password management solutions, TeamPassword makes for a collaborative experience. Whereas other password managers are designed for personal use, TeamPassword&nbsp;was created with your business' needs in mind. By using it, you can keep your projects moving smoothly while protecting your assets&nbsp;in the process.

Interested in learning more about TeamPassword and how it can help your teams achieve simplified security? <a href="https://members.scripted.com/organization/bf9b16a3-4d1a-4e8e-8557-42bca5ce70a3/jobs/Start%20a%20free%20trial%20today" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Start a free trial today</a> and see for yourself what modern password management looks like.

Thinking about ditching passwords? The passwordless authentication future isn't here yet, but it may very well be on its way. | Teampassword

Thinking about ditching passwords? The passwordless authentication future isn't here yet, but it may very well be on ...

Is the Future Passwords or Passwordless Authentication?

Is the Future Passwords, or Passwordless Authentication?

A few months ago our friends at <a href="https://in.security/" rel="follow">in.security</a> did a great webinar on all things related to passwords, and we wanted to share some of the key points.&nbsp;

<h2>How are Passwords Stored and Used?</h2>
When you register for a website or service, storing your password in plaintext in their database is&nbsp;

A "hash" is a a one-way cryptographic function which changes the input to an output that cannot be reversed. There are a number of secure hashing algorithms used for this purpose (check out this<a href="https://passwordsgenerator.net/sha256-hash-generator/" rel="follow"> online generator</a> to see how it works). The great thing about hashing algorithms is they will consistently produce the same output, but even a minor change to the input radically changes the end result. Using the SHA256 algorithm, the name TeamPassword becomes <code>773D2D1DB1E4E617F99515100DF3E6BB4F893DA1FC9A7F844E66F3086B69672B</code>. Just putting a space between Team and Password changes the output to <code>E8174A12ECE693ADF7D611E59192B049AA7CFD7DE2BC0654F7FC252282BD3F34</code>. 

<h2>How do Hackers Crack Passwords?</h2>
Hackers can use a number of methods to figure out your passwords and break into your accounts. Here's a quick <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/are-hackers-really-trying-to-steal-your-password" rel="follow">overview</a> of the six main ways they do that.



<h2>Data Breaches and Password Reuse</h2>
There have been<a href="https://haveibeenpwned.com/PwnedWebsites" rel="follow"> a lot of breaches</a>...and likely more we don't know about.&nbsp;
<h2>How Can I Stay Safe?</h2>
Still trying to remember all your passwords? Now you know why a password manager will make your life easier, it&rsquo;s time to see why TeamPassword is your best option. Find out today by starting&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">our free 14-day trial.</a>
If your business is looking for penetration tests, vulnerability assessments, or technical training <a href="https://in.security/" rel="follow">check them out</a>. You can follow them at <a href="https://twitter.com/stealthsploit" rel="follow">@Stealthsploit</a> and <a href="https://twitter.com/insecurity_ltd" rel="follow">@in.security</a>&nbsp;

A few months ago our friends at in.security did a great webinar on all things related to passwords, and we wanted to share some of the key p

A few months ago our friends at in.security did a great webinar on all things related to passwords, ...

Everything You Wanted to Know About Passwords

A few months ago our friends at in.security did a great webinar on all things related to passwords, and we wanted to share some of the key points. How are Passwords Stored and Used? When you register for a website or service, storing your password in plaintext in their database ...

There are an increasing number of stories focused on the danger for small businesses of not being secure online. The influx of malware and ransomware and the fact that 70% of all cyber attacks are against small businesses rightfully have a lot of small business owners concerned. But, the reason for these risks are surprisingly simple in most cases. The vast majority of hacks are because of human error or small security holes that can be easily patched - primary among them, password management. To address this issue and ensure your business is prepared against common hacks and social engineering that target user passwords, here are some of the most common problems faced and how to address them:
<h2>Employees Using Their Own Devices</h2>
More than 70% of employees access company data from a personal smart phone or tablet at some point. These devices are not always secured the same as your company computers and there's no way to manage their use of passwords or to ensure they avoid open public networks. A strong BYOD policy can ensure employees are more rigorous in protecting company data, and that they use the password manager or system that you put in place to protect against data loss. With employees increasingly working from home or remotely, small businesses should consider what sensitive information is needed for employees to do their jobs, and whether that could end up on a personal device. In cases where this is necessary, providing Virtual Private Networks (VPNs) and a password manager that supports secure sharing is essential. Also, consider doing regular training to ensure employees understand the potential risks and threaten from connecting on unsecure networks (see below).
<h2>Shared or Default Passwords</h2>
Default passwords setup during development or when a new account is created are often not changed, and worse, they can be shared easily between users. In small organizations and startups especially, this is a common problem as software seats may be limited or resources may be shared from a single account. All users should use unique passwords that meet strict guidelines and that they are updated regularly. Default passwords should require update immediately upon account creation, and you should utilize a password manager for all account sharing, and cloud storage for file access sharing. It is far better to use a <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/password-generator" rel="follow">password generator</a> to set a long, unique password. These generators are built into most password managers, and those passwords can be safely shared with multiple teammates.
<h2>Passwords Aren't Secure to Start</h2>
One of the most common problems with passwords is if they are easy to remember, they are also easy to guess! Many people erroneously think that a short password with lots of different character types is secure, when in reality the only way to ensure a truly secure password is to make it at least 12 characters long and somewhat arbitrary. Length is better than complexity in almost every situation with passwords, and keeping them long and complex is the way to go. Random password generators can ensure you have this for all passwords, but without a password manager to organize them, they become impossible to remember and quickly revert for many employees to something simple. In cases where a password must be memorized (like the master password for your password generator), consider using a passphrase (like TeamPassword-is-a-Blue-Padlock) or a mix of different things (like color+animal+place to get Blue-Flamingo-from-Timbuktu). These are surprisingly easy to remember, and if they are over 12 characters and use unusual or&nbsp; non-dictionary words they are very hard to crack.
<h2>Untrained Employees Posing a Risk</h2>
The single most common access point for hackers is your staff. Social engineering through unsolicited attachments, spoofed phone calls, or even looking over the shoulder of someone in a coffee shop leads to more hacks and data loss than malicious data breaches. Train your employees to spot phishing emails and protect with common sense procedures and best practices that you can followup on. With the right combination of password management, training, and procedures for your business, you can greatly reduce the risk of a hack and data loss for your business. The reason so many hackers target small businesses is that they are easy targets without the protocols of enterprise level organizations. Remove the low hanging fruit, and you can keep your company much safer from cyber risk.
<h2>Try TeamPassword</h2>
Using a secure password manager that supports sharing helps address these problems. TeamPassword's intuitive interface makes it the simplest and most secure way to store and share passwords with your team. Find out today by starting <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard?utm_source=blog&amp;utm_medium=blog&amp;utm_campaign=bcms#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">our free 14-day trial.</a>

To ensure your business is prepared against hacks that target user passwords, here are some common problems faced and how to address them.

There are an increasing number of stories focused on the danger for small businesses of not being secure ...

Most Common Password Problems Faced by Small Organizations

There are an increasing number of stories focused on the danger for small businesses of not being secure online. To address this issue and ensure your business is prepared against common hacks and social engineering that target user passwords, here are some of the most common problems faced and how to address them.

&ldquo;Password&rdquo; is indeed&nbsp;a bad password to use. You are right to roll your eyes if you hear somebody has used it. But there&rsquo;s a good chance your password sucks&nbsp;as well.
Several times a year, mainstream and tech media will report on the latest list of the &ldquo;worst&rdquo; passwords. Several different organizations make an annual list but they almost always use the same (lack of) criteria. It&rsquo;s simply&nbsp;based on how often the password appeared in leaked and stolen databases of account passwords.
It's not the fact a password was in such a list that makes it &ldquo;worst&rdquo; in this scenario: the database being exposed in plain text form is the fault of the hacked website, not the users. Instead the logic is that a password being used most often makes it &ldquo;obvious&rdquo; and thus a terrible choice.
Virtually every time this top ten comprises terms like &ldquo;password&rdquo;, &ldquo;123456&rdquo;, &ldquo;letmein&rdquo; and the occasional cultural reference: chances are &ldquo;COVID&rdquo; will be all over the lists for 2020. The usual media response is that such obvious terms appearing in the list prove the computer-using public are a bunch of idiots and society is doomed.
The problem is that these terms appearing in the lists don&rsquo;t tell us much useful about users as a whole&nbsp;because these terms will always be in the list. It&rsquo;s completely circular logic because inherently the most commonly used passwords will always be obvious and predictable choices.
What would actually&nbsp;be useful would be to know what percentage of all passwords fall into the &ldquo;obvious category&rdquo; or even what proportion are rarely used or even unique. That would tell us much more about trends in behavior.
Let&rsquo;s look instead at some of the factors that really determines how secure a password is.
<h2>Dictionary Words</h2>
A password that&rsquo;s simply&nbsp;a word is about as bad as it gets, and that&rsquo;s the case whether you use &ldquo;password&rdquo; or &ldquo;rhubarb&rdquo;. The former is certainly&nbsp;worse in the scenario of somebody literally typing in a guessed password to try to&nbsp;access an account. That&rsquo;s a very small part of overall cybercrime, however, particularly given most sites will lock after a set number of failed login attempts.
Instead, most attempts to crack a password involve thousands or millions of attempts, whether that involves bypassing the attempt limit or trying to decrypt a stolen database of encrypted passwords. The first run will often involve trying a list of words, which could be a list of known common passwords (including allegedly clever workarounds like &ldquo;pa55w0rd&rdquo;), the most common words in a language, or even a literal dictionary.
This won&rsquo;t usually be the only tactic an attacker uses, but a &ldquo;real&rdquo; word as your password puts you at much greater risk.
<h2>Length</h2>
The next step after a dictionary attack is a brute force attack. This involves literally trying every possible&nbsp;combination of letters and in this scenario, longer passwords are exponentially more secure. Think of it this way: you can guarantee to guess a single letter within 26 attempts. For two letters, you&rsquo;d need 26 x 26 attempts, totaling 676. Follow this logic and simply&nbsp;using eight characters gets you to five trillion possibilities. Even with incredibly fast computers, it only takes a few extra characters to increase the average time to crack a password from a few hours to thousands of years.
<h2>Special Characters</h2>
Using just letters makes for a bad password for the same reason that length matters. For a single character, using numbers takes the number of possibilities from 26 to 36. Use symbols on the average keyboard and you can easily add another 26. Use capital letters rather than just lower case and that&rsquo;s another 26. Even with a (very much not recommended) four-character password, you&rsquo;re talking about the difference between 11 million possibilities and nearly 6 billion.
<h2>The Most Terrible Password</h2>
The truth is that while length and characters matter, the worst password is the one you use on more than one site. Whenever an unencrypted database of usernames and passwords gets exposed (either&nbsp;because hackers decrypted it or they found it stored in plain text), the first thing they&rsquo;ll do is try the details on other websites and services, particularly ones that will grant access to sensitive personal data. When you reuse passwords on multiple accounts, you&rsquo;re effectively&nbsp;putting all those accounts at the same level of risk as the least-well secured.
<h2>The Truly Good Password</h2>
The most secure password is one that&rsquo;s unique to an account, is a good length (12 characters is often recommended as a minimum) and uses a combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols. If that sounds like it would be impossible to remember, don&rsquo;t worry: it&rsquo;s not smart to let your memory be a limit on your security. Instead the most practical way to generate and use unique reliably secure passwords for every account is a password manager.&nbsp;

“Password” is indeed a bad password to use. Let’s look instead at some of the factors that really determines how secure a password is.

“Password” is indeed a bad password to use. You are right to roll your eyes if you hear ...

The Truth About Terrible Passwords

“Password” is indeed a bad password to use. You are right to roll your eyes if you hear somebody has used it. But there’s a good chance your password sucks as well. Several different organizations make an annual list but they almost always use the same (lack of) criteria. It’s simply based on how often the password appeared in leaked and stolen databases of account passwords.

<h2>A Year in Numbers, Letters, and Special Characters</h2>
OK, so none of the passwords on this list are as ridiculous as "123456" or "Password" (believe us, plenty of people still use these), but Americans made common password security mistakes in 2020. Astonishingly, 25 percent &mdash; that's one in four of us &mdash; shared personal passwords with other people at some point this year.&nbsp;That's&nbsp;without protection like a&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/why-do-i-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">good password manager</a>.&nbsp;And we think this is just asking for trouble.&nbsp;The above is just one of the fascinating insights from a&nbsp;<a href="https://tech.co/news/password-security-risks" target="_blank" rel="noopener">new survey</a>&nbsp;by home security firm Security.org. Below are some of our favorites. Have you used any of these passwords? (Hint: Don't tell us!)&nbsp;
<h3>COVID and the Election On Our Mind</h3>
The&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/covid-password-management-technologies" target="_blank" rel="noopener">COVID-19 pandemic</a>&nbsp;has affected all of our lives, in one way or another. So perhaps it's no surprise that the coronavirus has influenced so many password choices this year. Fourteen percent of people used the word "COVID" in a password in 2020. (It didn't even appear on last year's list.)&nbsp;
Twenty-one percent of people used "Biden" or "Trump" as part of a password in 2020, and while&nbsp;Trump didn't win the election, he appeared in more passwords
<h3>We're Cursing More</h3>
It's been a terrible year for many people, so perhaps Americans are expressing their frustrations through their password choices. Twenty percent of people used the f-bomb or another curse word as part of a password in 2020.&nbsp;Curse words appear more times in passwords than birth years, pets' names, first names, and street names.&nbsp;
<h3>We're Spelling Words Incorrectly</h3>
Eleven percent of passwords contained misspelled words this year. Perhaps unintentionally. Or maybe to fool hackers. We're not sure. Though we imagine intentionally misspelled words are difficult to remember.&nbsp;
<h3>We Favor Our Partners Over Our Parents</h3>
Eight percent of people included their partner's name in their password in 2020, compared to 7 percent of people who included a parent's name, suggesting Americans prefer their lovers to their mothers and fathers. But children's names are still the most popular, appearing in 9 percent of password choices this year.&nbsp;
<h3>We Like to Repeat Characters. Repeatedly.</h3>
Five percent of people used a password with repeated characters in 2020. That means passwords like "aaaaa" and "eeeee." We're not sure why.&nbsp;
<h3>We Don't Like to Use Lots of Characters in Our Passwords</h3>
Forty-five percent of Americans used passwords with just eight characters or fewer in 2020. But it gets worse. Sixteen percent of Americans used passwords with seven characters or fewer. (Just 22 percent used&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/tips-and-tricks-to-create-a-strong-password" target="_blank" rel="noopener">longer, stronger passwords</a>&nbsp;of 12 characters or more.)&nbsp;

<h2>Final Word</h2>
In a year where more of us are working from home, the need for password security has never been greater. Not all the passwords on this list are bad, but there's no excuse for using fewer than eight characters and sharing passwords with no protection. Plus, many of the passwords listed above are predictable, making it easier for hackers to guess them. Here are some pro-tips:
<ul>
<li>Longer passwords are stronger passwords.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Use a combination of numbers, letters, and special characters.</li>
<li>And, perhaps,&nbsp;most importantly, use a password manager like&nbsp;&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TeamPassword</a>.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
TeamPassword is a simple and effective way to store and share passwords and team logins so you can keep business projects moving and protect your assets.&nbsp;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Click here to get TeamPassword</a>.&nbsp;

A Year in Numbers, Letters, and Special Characters OK. Find out the best and worst trends in 2020 passwords

A Year in Numbers, Letters, and Special Characters OK, so none of the passwords on this list are ...

The Biggest Password Trends of 2020

A Year in Numbers, Letters, and Special Characters OK, so none of the passwords on this list are as ridiculous as "123456" or "Password" (believe us, plenty of people still use these), but Americans made common password security mistakes in 2020.

Password encryption is essential to store user credentials stored in a database securely. Without password encryption, anyone accessing a user database on a company's servers (including hackers) could easily view any stored passwords.
Even a strong 32-character password created using a <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">secure password generator</a> is useless without password-encryption! If someone can read your password on a server, they can use it simply by copy/pasting it&mdash;no matter how long or complicated the password might be!
Encryption scrambles your password before saving it on the server. So, if someone hacks the server, instead of finding password123, they find a random series of letters and numbers.
In this article, we're going to explore the world of password encryption, why <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/tips-and-tricks-to-create-a-strong-password">strong passwords matter</a>, and how you can practice better password management!
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> is the password management solution for small businesses! Create, store, and share login credentials safely with employees, contractors, and clients. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today!
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;[Table of Contents]
<ul>
<li><a href="#understandingpasswordencryption" rel="follow">Understanding Password Encryption</a></li>
<li><a href="#howdoespasswordencryptionwork" rel="follow">How Does Password Encryption Work?</a></li>
<li><a href="#5commonpasswordencryptionmethods" rel="follow">5 Common Password Encryption Methods</a></li>
<li><a href="#whystrongpasswordsmatter" rel="follow">Why Strong Passwords Matter</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="understandingpasswordencryption">Understanding Password Encryption</h2>
To explain password encryption effectively, we must first grasp the language. Several terms might be unfamiliar, so here is a quick intro to password encryption terminology.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Key: Used to lock and unlock passwords using a random string of bits. You get private and public keys that crypt and decrypt data differently, but we won't get too deep in the weeds with keys!</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Bits: A logical state with one of two possible values, including 1/0, true/false, yes/no, or on/off as typical examples.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Block (block cipher): A deterministic algorithm operating on fixed-length groups of bits, called blocks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash function: The algorithm that uses the key to create password encryption and decryption. A hash function is essentially a piece of code that runs every time someone saves a password or logs into an application.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash: A random series of numbers and letters representing your password. The hash function uses your hash instead of the raw password for authentication.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt: Additional letters and numbers appended to the hash</li>
</ul>
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<h2 id="howdoespasswordencryptionwork">How Does Password Encryption Work?</h2>
When you save a new password, a hash function creates a hash version and saves that on the server.&nbsp;
Every time you log in using your password, the hash function recreates the hash to see if it matches what's stored. If the hashes match, the algorithm passes the authentication and logs you in.&nbsp;
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Original password: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hashed password: 6AF1CE202340​FE71BDB914AD5357​E33A6982A63B</li>
</ul>
While this might seem secure, simple hashed passwords aren't hack-proof.
The hash function only creates a unique hash for each password, not each user. So, if multiple users have the password, Pa$$w0rd123, the hash will be exactly the same.
To overcome this encryption vulnerability, engineers salt passwords so each hash is unique, even if the passwords are identical.
<h3>How Salt Works</h3>
A salt appends a unique value of 8 bytes (16 characters) to the password before the hash function creates a hash. This way, even identical passwords are unique before the hash function.
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two identical passwords: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value one: E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value two: 84B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one before hash: Pa$$w0rd123E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two before hash: Pa$$w0rd12384B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one hashed value (SHA256): 72AE25495A7981​C40622D49F9A52E4F15​65C90F048F59027BD9​C8C8900D5C3D8</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two hashed value (SHA256): B4B6603ABC670​967E99C7E7F1389E40​CD16E78AD38EB1468E​C2AA1E62B8BED3A</li>
</ul>
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<h2 id="5commonpasswordencryptionmethods">5 Common Password Encryption Methods</h2>
<h3>1. Data Encryption Standard (DES)</h3>
While applications no longer use Data Encryption Standard (DES), it's important to mention this password encryption method because of its history and influence on more secure modern standards.
IBM developed DES as a 56-bit encryption technology in the early 1970s. The NSA adopted and improved DES before it was approved worldwide as the encryption standard.
However, since the late 70s, hackers have been able to break DES encrypted passwords. In 1999, ethical hackers managed to break a DES key in under 24 hours.&nbsp;
To make DES more secure, engineers created Triple DES and later Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), which we still use today.
<h3>2. Triple DES</h3>
Triple DES uses three 56-bit keys (blocks) to create 168-bit encryption (some security experts argue that Triple DES is only 112 bits strong). Although Triple-DES is slowly being phased out, many financial institutions still use it to encrypt ATM PINs.
<h3>3. Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)</h3>
AES is the new encryption standard&mdash;trusted by the United States Government and many other prominent organizations globally. At 128 bits, AES is sufficiently secure, but most organizations prefer heavy-duty 256-bit encryption.
At <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">TeamPassword</a>, we use 256-bit encryption to store passwords, ensuring the highest levels of security for our clients. We're also a <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">secure hosting provider</a> holding multiple security accreditations.
Hackers can only break an AES encrypted password through a brute-force attack&mdash;trying password combinations to find the right one.
To counter brute-force attacks, applications will lock an account after a certain number of attempts or use tools like Google's reCAPTURE.
<h3>4. Blowfish</h3>
American cryptographer, Bruce Schneier, designed Blowfish in 1993 as an antidote to the weak DES encryption. Blowfish uses a 64-bit block and variable key length of 32 to 448 bits.
Although Blowfish is more robust than its DES predecessor, the 64-bit block is still vulnerable to attacks, most commonly birthday attacks&mdash;a cryptographic attack that exploits the mathematics behind the algorithm.
To solve Blowfish vulnerabilities, engineers created Twofish in 1998 (128-bit blocks with 256-bit keys) and Threefish in 2008 (256, 516, 1024-bit blocks with 256, 516, 1024-bit keys).
<h3>5. Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA)</h3>
RSA is one of the oldest and widely used to transfer data securely. The encryption works with two keys, two large prime numbers, and an additional auxiliary value.
Due to the complicated encrypting and decrypting process, there is no known method for breaking RSA encryption.&nbsp;
Although widely used for transferring data, RSA is slow and not suitable for password encryption.
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<h2 id="whystrongpasswordsmatter">Why Strong Passwords Matter</h2>
Password encryption can only prevent criminals from viewing saved credentials stored on a server&mdash;but cannot prevent hackers from guessing weak/commonly used passwords. If you <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reuse the same password for multiple accounts</a>, this also puts you at risk!
Encryption is most effective when users create robust, unique passwords for every account. For example, a random 32-character password with letters, numbers, and special characters hashed and salted is near impossible to guess or decode, even using a computer!
In another scenario, let's assume you have a strong 32-character password, but you use it for every account. If hackers manage to steal that password, they have access to every account using the same credentials! Your strong password is effectively useless.
<h3>Improving Your Password Management</h3>
Now that you understand password encryption and the associated vulnerabilities, you can see why strong passwords are essential.
Effective password management is crucial to protect yourself against cyberattacks or in the highly likely event of a data breach where hackers steal your credentials.
Criminals are after the low-hanging fruit&mdash;people who use weak passwords!
5 tips for creating stronger passwords:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Create strong passwords for every account. The easiest way to do this is using a password generator. <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">TeamPassword has a free password generator</a> anyone can use to create passwords from 12-32 characters using uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters. We recommend creating passwords as long as the application will allow.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords shorter than eight characters, with 12 being our recommended minimum.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never reuse the same password for multiple accounts.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords with your name, family member's names, or pet's names. With social media, this information is freely available. Criminals can add those names to algorithms for brute-force attacks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Don't store passwords in digital notepads or spreadsheets. We recommend using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager like TeamPassword</a> to create and store your credentials.</li>
</ol>
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<h2>Why You Need a Password Manager like TeamPassword</h2>
We have so many accounts these days; it's almost impossible to create unique, memorable, secure passwords for each one. A password manager solves this problem.
Instead of remembering the credentials for every account, you only need to memorize the one to log into your password manager.&nbsp;
TeamPassword keeps all of your credentials safely stored and encrypted, so you never have to memorize a password again. Instead of entering your credentials, you use one of TeamPassword's browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) to log into accounts.
<h3>Built for Teams</h3>
TeamPassword's best feature is its ability to share credentials with team members securely. Instead of sharing passwords, you provide access through TeamPassword.&nbsp;
Employees <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">use TeamPassword</a> to log in, meaning you never share raw passwords&mdash;no more worrying about unauthorized access or sharing.
You can create groups in TeamPassword to share access with employees, clients, contractors, and freelancers. When someone no longer needs access, remove them from the group with a single click. No need to change passwords every time someone leaves a project!
<h3>Built-In Password Generator</h3>
TeamPassword features a built-in secure password manager so you can create robust passwords for every account. TeamPassword also ensures you never reuse the same credentials so that you won't fall victim to credential stuffing attacks!
With a built-in password generator, you can change passwords regularly, and TeamPassword will update the new credentials for all users!
<h3>Monitor Login Activity</h3>
TeamPassword's activity log keeps track of every action across all of your accounts&mdash;logins, password changes, new team members, sharing access, and more.
You can also set up email notifications for all TeamPassword actions so that you can react fast to any suspicious activity.
<h3>Get Your Free TeamPassword Trial</h3>
Password encryption is not enough to protect your business from password vulnerabilities! You need a robust password manager like TeamPassword to create, store, and share credentials securely.
&rlm;&rlm;&lrm; &lrm;
<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> and let TeamPassword secure your company's digital assets.

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