Overcome the myriad challenges of password management to bolster data protection

Strengthening the protection of confidential and sensitive data is currently a priority for 40% of chief security officers.^[1]

And both enterprises and small and mid-sized businesses have already made significant investments in authentication, access controls and identity and access management (IAM).^[2]

But these investments are not effective without robust passwords. At the same time, password management is a cost for IT and security teams, and an inconvenience for technology users.

The scale of the problem should not be underestimated. The Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report says that half of data breaches, and over 80% of attacks on web applications involved compromised credentials.^[3] And the average employee now has to manage over 100 unique user accounts .^[4]

This leaves businesses facing a number of challenges around password management.

These include SSO (single sign on) authentication; automation, and integration with their identity infrastructure, including Lightweight Directory Access Protocol and Active Directory.

In addition, IT teams have to meet compliance responsibilities, ensuring that passwords and password management complies with GDPR, security standards such as ISO27001, and the business’ backup, recovery and auditing requirements.

Cutting down password overheads

Mid-sized businesses and enterprises all want to reduce the cost of passwords and identity management. But they want to do this without sacrificing flexibility, the time it takes to resolve password issues, and of course, security.

Dedicated password management solutions can help with this. The right tools can reduce password-related support costs by as much 80%.^[5]

Even greater benefits come from improved security. Organisations that have moved to their own password management infrastructure say they see a 60% decrease in password-related security incidents.^[6] 

However effective a solution might be on a technical level, it will not produce the promised security or productivity benefits unless it is adopted widely.

Here, CIOs and security teams need to consider the user experience and the user interface of the tools they are deploying. Even the best solution is ineffective if users ignore it.

Deploying password management

These factors are prompting more organisations to deploy their own password management tools.

This gives IT and security teams complete control over password management, and control of data locations, or “sovereignty”, and access.

Additional capabilities include automated password rotation, and integration with single sign on (SSO), multi-factor authentication systems, and privileged access management.

This goes far beyond the password and identity management capabilities of the majority of enterprise applications. And there are further benefits of a single, centralised approach to password and identity management, rather than relying on each software vendor’s own approach.

CIOs, though, will want any dedicated password management tool to integrate with those applications, including through APIs. And they will want it to support multiple locations, including international operations.

The investment, though, will pay off.

Moving to a dedicated password manager – locally or in the cloud – can bring considerable savings. Passwork, for example, has a total cost of ownership that is up to 30% lower than comparable, alternative tools.

But it is not just about value for money. Investing in password management is about efficiency: reduced overheads, less time wasted on routine password management, and an improved user experience.

And it is investing in an essential part of any comprehensive approach to compliance and security.

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[1] Foundry, CSO Security Priorities Study, 2024

[2] Foundry, CSO Security Priorities Study, 2024

[3]Verizon DRIR 2023, pages 5 & 8  https://www.verizon.com/business/resources/Te46/reports/2023-dbir-public-sector-snapshot.pdf – client supplied reference, citation and permissions needed

[4] Passwork 2024, User Study on Passwork management practices. Sample size: 100 users

[5] Gartner, Best Practices for Password Management report, 2020

[6] Kaspersky, Patch management combined with robust password policies reduce the risk of cyberattacks to businesses by up to 60%