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Your company's entire digital security could collapse with just one compromised password. 

While hackers are using AI to crack credentials faster than ever, many businesses still have employees writing passwords on sticky notes and repeating them across multiple accounts. 

Fortunately, there are simple tools out there that make it easy to patch these vulnerabilities. 

In this post, we’ll show you why a password manager is one of the smartest investments your business can make right now.

The risk of poor password practices

As our daily internet use continues to grow around the world, so does the risk of cyberattacks. 

Based on an MIT study from last year, data breaches increased 20% year-over-year in 2023. Additionally, ransomware attacks increased by 70% in that same time period. 

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With so much valuable data out there for the taking, malicious actors have ample incentive to try and probe for vulnerabilities. 

And this trend is likely to continue. According to the same MIT study, businesses are now storing more data than ever offsite, with 60% of corporate data now stored in the cloud. 

New threats from AI

Emerging technology like generative AI could also open up new vectors of attack for hackers. 

Speaking with Harvard Magazine, security expert Bruce Schneier noted that AI could use its creative abilities to devise novel techniques for exposing vulnerabilities. 

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With the growing risk of attacks, weak cybersecurity could lead to costly data breaches for any company that’s not properly prepared. 

Fortunately, there are many ways to improve your company’s cybersecurity. One of the easiest and most effective techniques that you can adopt immediately is to start using a password manager for your company’s credentials. 

Why your team should start using a password manager

Password managers allow individuals or companies to store and encrypt all of their login credentials for the dozens of apps they use every day. 

They are an effective tool for boosting your team’s security because they make it much easier for you to use strong and unique passwords. 

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You’ve likely noticed that whenever you sign up to use a new app, you’ll see a recommendation – or sometimes a requirement – to use a strong password. 

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This means that your password should have a variety of character types, be over a certain length, and should avoid using common words. 

All of these characteristics make it difficult for hackers or an AI to guess your password through brute force attacks. 

The danger of reused passwords

But as we all know, following these guidelines is easier said than done. 

According to an Okta study, American companies use over 100 applications on average.  

That’s a lot of passwords to remember, so it’s no surprise that 78% of people admit to reusing the same password in multiple applications. 

Having duplicate passwords creates critical vulnerabilities in your security, and amplifies the damage that a single exposed password can cause. 

Bear in mind that hackers will often attack the apps or sites that you have accounts with. If they’re able to steal customer data from one popular site, such as Target, they’ll try using those same passwords on other sites like Amazon and Google. 

If you’re reusing passwords, these hackers can obtain access to multiple apps and their data with just a single set of credentials. 

Creating unique credentials with password managers

Password managers make it much easier to create strong, unique passwords for each app that you and your team use. 

You don’t need to worry about making memorable passwords, since the password manager will store them all securely for you. 

And since you don’t need to rely on your own memory, you won’t be tempted to use the same password repeatedly out of convenience. 

However, if you do reuse a password by accident, your password manager will also alert you to the duplicate credentials so you can update your login info for the affected apps.

Data security in password managers

While storing all of your passwords in one location might seem a little suspect, password managers take several measures to ensure that your data is safe. 

First and foremost, your data is encrypted. Password manager apps typically use industry-standard protocols like 256-bit AES encryption, which is essentially impossible to crack.  

Beyond basic encryption, each app will use different specific methods to ensure security. 

For instance, the password manager 1password uses a secret key. 

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Logging into 1password requires this locally generated secret key in addition to a master password, making it so attackers can’t gain access to your account even if your password is compromised. 

Every password manager will provide details about their security practices on their website, so you and your IT team can do more research before making a selection. 

Safely sharing login credentials

Additionally, password managers make it easy to share credentials securely. 

Most of us have shared or received passwords from coworkers before, and if we’re being honest, we haven’t been especially secure about it. 

Sharing passwords in plain text over Slack or email is easy, but it absolutely is not safe. 

Unfortunately, but unsurprisingly, about a third of people surveyed report that they share passwords like this regularly at work. 

Exposing passwords increases your company’s risk to cyberattacks, but your team’s not likely to stop doing it, because sharing passwords is often necessary for efficient collaboration. 

Thankfully, using a password manager doesn't mean you have to stop sharing logins. Instead, they give you easy ways to do it securely. 

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The exact features will vary a bit based on the password manager you’re using, but they’ll typically give you options to share credentials without exposing them to the recipient. You’ll also often have the choice to set an expiration date for your shared credentials, so sharing a login once doesn’t have to grant permanent access. 

If you’re frequently working with vendors, contractors, or other third parties, password managers are a great way to grant access securely. 

How XRay keeps data secure with password managers

At XRay.Tech, we work with our clients to streamline their systems with automation and AI.

To do our jobs effectively, we frequently need direct access to our clients’ apps, so we always require that they use password managers to securely store their credentials and share them with us as needed. 

In many cases, we won’t work with companies that don’t use password managers. 

The risk is simply too high for all parties involved, and we’ve seen businesses get compromised by reused or improperly shared passwords far too often. 

If you’d like to learn more about how we can create more time for your team with automation and AI, you can book a free 15-minute call to discuss your goals and get started.

And rest assured; we’ll keep your sensitive data secure every step of the way. 

Password managers to consider

If you want to start using a password manager for yourself or for your company, there are many viable options out there to consider. 

CNet has a good breakdown of options for different budgets and priorities. 

At XRay, we’re currently using 1password, which is their recommendation for the Best Premium password manager.

However, if you’re looking for alternatives, CNet also suggests the open-source Bitwarden as a free option, and tools like Dashlane for anyone looking to store their family’s passwords. 

There are many apps available, and whichever one you settle on, just make sure it’s a reputable company with a good history of security. 

Additionally, once you adopt it at your company, make sure your team actually uses it.

No password manager will be effective if everyone’s still writing passwords on sticky notes and using the same login for everything. 

Safely store and share your company’s passwords

Password managers are an easy way to store the dozens or hundreds of credentials your team uses on a daily basis

They also make it easy to securely share access with vendors, freelancers, and other collaborators. 

So don’t wait - research your options and start using one today to make your company more secure.

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