Leaving Passwords and Developing Phishing-Resistant Users

Passwords were once considered a sufficient form of online authentication, but are now widely recognized as an insecure form of authentication that puts users at high risk of modern cyberattacks like phishing. Even the strongest passwords can be guessed, stolen, or intercepted, and once compromised, malicious actors can easily bypass old forms of multi-factor authentication (MFA) and gain access to personal information.

Organizations largely understand the risks of relying solely on passwords for online account security and are looking for ways to become more cyber resilient. Progress is certainly being made: the UK government recently introduced regulations to protect consumers from hacking and other cyberattacks, including banning smart device manufacturers from setting weak, easy-to-guess default passwords such as “12345.”