Here at Creative Network Solutions, we are Preston’s leading IT support and network services experts. From secure remote access services to business VoIP, we are the team you can count on. And this is our guide to everything you should know about the different methods used by hackers to steal your passwords.
What are the different ways hackers can steal your business passwords?
Hackers and cyber criminals can steal the passwords for your business accounts in a number of different ways, including:
- Credential stuffing– this is a cyber crime technique that involves searching for your usernames or email addresses within databases of stolen details. So if you or your staff have the same password across websites, as you do for your business, the chances are hackers could find this, and use it to access your accounts.
- Phishing- phishing itself is a huge topic. But where this pertains to password theft in particular, is when you or your colleagues receive an email that looks like it was sent from a legitimate company you use. This could be the social media platform you use for advertising, the website you subscribe to for free stock images, or even the bank. This email will ask you to verify your identity, and when entered, will provide all the information straight to the criminals. For this reason, effective training around phishing is essential to help prevent this, and keep your business safe.
- Password spraying- a simpler name for this would be guesswork. This technique uses a list of common passwords and letter and number combinations to try and gain access to your accounts. Setting up two-factor authorization can be key to prevent criminals succeeding in these types of attacks.
- Keylogging- this is usually used by criminals that are working closely with you, that can install malicious software to record the keys you press, and determine your password. While this software can be sent as a virus, most anti-virus protection will prevent the download, and so local access is often required.
- Brute force- this is the type of password hacking most frequently shown in the media, but in reality it is not used as frequently as other password stealing methods. This method uses an algorithm to decode the password, but this is not always effective against encrypted passwords, and can be much more time consuming for criminals.
- Local access- finally, the least common way that cyber criminals can find your password to access your account is to find this literally written down. It needs to be mandatory across all businesses that passwords are not written down and stuck to laptops or desktops, as anyone could then access your accounts.
Keeping your business passwords safe
There are a number of ways to keep your passwords safe, and prevent cyber crime. These include:
- Make sure each password for each account is totally unique and different. Passwords should not be just a modified version of the same word or phrase.
- Choose complicated passwords that are difficult to guess
- Change passwords regularly
- Use two-factor authentication to prevent access to your accounts, even if your password is compromised
For more information or advice about your network security, systems, or cloud solutions, why not ask the experts today, here at Creative Network Solutions.