5 Crucial Business Password Management Practices
Password management is the building block of security for your business. While there are many aspects of staying safe online, maintaining a strong password is the best and easiest way to ensure your business doesn’t suffer a data breach
There are five crucial business password management practices that can protect your company.
1. Use a Password Manager
By far the easiest and best investment is to use a corporate password manager. Companies like Keeper Security specialize in keeping your business safe.
Password managers implement a single sign on system where all of your individual passwords and account information is stored under one master password. This allows for individual passwords to be used on each application, which is standard password protection protocol, without the hassle of trying to remember which password goes to which application.
Gone are the days of having to sit on hold with IT while they perform yet another password reset of your most used applications because you forgot your password.
2. Encryption is Essential
Password Management Companies offer more than just password storage. They also have encryption practices that secure your data so that in the event of a breach, all the hackers are receiving is a file of scrambled characters.
Unscrambling encryption is something even the most advanced hackers won’t have the ability to do in the time before passwords change and the information is useless. This is an easy and effective way to keep secure information safe.
Encryption is especially important if your company handles protected health information, social security numbers, or banking and credit card details. Not only is it important, but not having encryption means you are out of compliance with laws such as HIPAA.
3. Limit Password Sharing
While there may be one or two times where sharing a password may be necessary, for the most part, you should never share your password with anyone. Even the employee who seems to have your best interest at heart should not be privy to your password.
Passwords are confidential for a reason. Sharing your password with one person could seem harmless. But if they do not share the same confidentiality as you, they can easily pass that information on, even unintentionally.
There is no easier way to have a security breach than to just hand out your password.
4. Implement Two-Factor Authentication
Utilizing two-factor authentication protects you from someone who may be able to guess your password actually being able to enter your accounts. When you enable two-factor authentication, it sends a text with a code to your phone. You must enter this code before the system will let you continue.
Without the code, you are locked out and you won’t be able to access any of the information. If someone is able to hack into your account and not complete the two-factor authentication, you will be notified and will be able to change your password on your next login. It is a great tool in keeping you safe.
5. Educate Employees on Safe Internet Usage
While most of these tasks seem simple on the surface, a lot of times employees forget that they are dealing with a company and not just their home computer. Educating your staff on the importance of safe internet usage is essential in keeping your business safe.
Educate on the importance of not opening links on emails where they don’t know the sender. It is much easier in business to want to trust a link from an unknown source thinking they are a potential client or vendor. Ensure that the link you are opening does come from a trusted source and not a phishing scam.
Set up web blocks on sites that employees are not permitted to use. This usually includes all social media sites, unless their use is part of their job. Limiting access to certain websites helps maintain security across sites that are notorious for creating data breaches.
Maintaining a password change schedule can ensure that all of your employees are compliant with constantly changing their password. Instead of suggesting a change, mandate that they change it on a recurring interval. 90 days is a standard timeframe, but some companies opt for 30 to ensure their security.
If you follow these simple steps to password security and invest in a password management system like the ones offered by Keeper Security, you can be confident that you are providing your business with the toughest internet security you can get.
Maintaining your passwords and keeping your information off the dark web will not only help you sleep at night but can save you from a very expensive data breach that could potentially end your business.
Hackers are smart and very resilient, but good security can keep them at bay and your information safe.
