According to a national US password survey commissioned by LogRhythm, Inc., the Security Intelligence Company, only 21 percent of those surveyed create unique passwords for each of their online accounts. This and other survey results released recently indicate that employees may unknowingly place their organizations at greater risk for a potential security breach. Other insights revealed in this Password Hygiene Survey (Infographic):
- 54 percent of respondents overlap their personal and work passwords
- Consequence: If you are exposed at home or at work, you are exposed in both areas.
- 88 percent of respondents record their work passwords in an unsecure location
- Consequence: No password is secret if stored where it can be easily accessed by bad actors.
- 79 percent of respondents are required to change their work passwords less than once a month
- Consequence: This gives the criminals more time to find and exploit vulnerabilities.
“Cyber threats are growing in volume and sophistication, and company employees are often the weak link within company defenses,” said Chris Petersen, senior vice president of products, CTO and co-founder at LogRhythm. “Compromised user credentials continue to be a common vector through which cyber attackers penetrate the networks of their targets. User accounts and passwords are being harvested on the black market in support of active and future attacks. In many cases, an attacker must compromise credentials in support of their goals. It is imperative employers vigilantly monitor for behaviors of compromised credentials to avoid data breaches and other damaging cyber incidents.”
Along with these survey findings, LogRhythm offers password hygiene recommendations for employees to better protect their own personal data as well as their organization’s network. You can also find a series of educational blog posts on security awareness and best practices here.
Survey Methodology
LogRhythm conducted this survey by polling 520 full-time employees at organizations with 250 or more employees in various industries including healthcare, retail, manufacturing, utilities/energy, education, banking and automotive. For additional information or to receive the raw survey results, please contact logrhythm@mslgroup.com.
About LogRhythm
LogRhythm, a leader in security intelligence and analytics, empowers organizations around the globe to rapidly detect, respond to and neutralize damaging cyber threats. The company’s award-winning platform unifies next-generation SIEM, log management, network and endpoint forensics, and advanced security analytics. In addition to protecting customers from the risks associated with cyber threats, LogRhythm provides innovative compliance automation and assurance, and enhanced IT intelligence.
LogRhythm is consistently recognized as a market leader. The company has been positioned as a Leader in Gartner’s SIEM Magic Quadrant report for three consecutive years, named a “Champion” in Info-Tech Research Group’s 2014-15 SIEM Vendor Landscape report and ranked Best-in-Class (No. 1) in DCIG’s 2014-15 SIEM Appliance Buyer’s Guide. In addition, LogRhythm has received Frost & Sullivan’s SIEM Global Market Penetration Leadership Award and been named a Top Workplace by the Denver Post. LogRhythm is headquartered in Boulder, Colorado, with operations throughout North and South America, Europe and the Asia Pacific region.
For more information about LogRhythm, visit http://www.logrhythm.com
