5 Tips to Improve Your Password Security

Change Your Password Day is right around the corner. Observed every year on February 1, the day aims to raise awareness about cybersecurity and underscores the importance of keeping passwords strong and up to date.

But going beyond an annual password change, Dr. Martin Kraemer, security awareness advocate at KnowBe4, has shared the five following practices all organizations should adopt to improve their security hygiene in 2025:

1. Monitor new passwords automatically: Use available tools to validate new passwords against known breaches and dark web datasets, and alert users to change their passwords if a match is detected.

2. Encourage the use of pass-phrases or randomly generated passwords: Promote pass-phrases or randomly generated passwords for greater strength and resilience against attacks.

3. Require the use of a password manager: Mandate password managers to securely create, store, and manage unique credentials, removing the burden away from the employee to remember long character combinations. 

4. Recommend implementing Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA): Strengthen security by requiring an additional verification step, like a code, biometric, or token.

5. Reduce the importance of password complexity in favor of length: Where a password manager cannot be used, encourage employees to focus on longer passwords or pass-phrases rather than relying heavily on complex character requirements.

Dr. Kraemer commented: “While Change Your Password Day is a great reminder to all employees of their individual responsibility when it comes to cybersecurity, in today’s climate, it might be better named ‘Use Strong Authentication Day.’ Changing your password regularly once served as a timely reminder that cybersecurity mattered, even if the act itself did not always result in greater security. Now, the actions required of employees may be different, but the message remains the same—everyone has a part to play in safeguarding their organization against threats."

Featured

  • Evolving Cybersecurity Strategies: Uniting Human Risk Management and Security Awareness Training

    Organizations are increasingly turning their attention to human-focused security approaches, as two out of three (68%) cybersecurity incidents involve people. Threat actors are shifting from targeting networks and systems to hacking humans via social engineering methods, living off human errors as their most prevalent attack vector. Whether manipulated or not, human cyber behavior is leveraged to gain backdoor access into systems. This mainly results from a lack of employee training and awareness about evolving attack techniques employed by malign actors. Read Now

  • Report: 1 in 3 Easily Exploitable Vulnerabilities Found on Cloud Assets

    CyCognito recently released new research highlighting critical security vulnerabilities across cloud-hosted assets, revealing that one in three easily exploitable vulnerabilities or misconfigurations are found on cloud assets. As organizations increasingly shift to multi-cloud strategies, the findings underscore significant security gaps that could provide attackers with potential footholds into networks. Read Now

  • Built for Today, Ready for Tomorrow

    Selecting the right VMS is critical for any organization that depends on video surveillance to ensure safety, security and operational efficiency. While many organizations focus on immediate needs such as budget and deployment size, let us review some of the long-term considerations that can significantly impact a VMS's utility and flexibility. Read Now

  • Paving the Way to Smart Buildings

    In today's rapidly evolving security landscape, the convergence of on-prem, edge and cloud technologies are critical. The physical security landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, driven by the rapid digitalization of buildings and the evolving needs of modern organizations. As the buildings sector pivots towards smart, AI and data-driven operations, the integration of both edge and cloud technology has become crucial. Read Now

  • The Cybersecurity Time Bomb

    If you work in physical security, you have probably seen it: a camera, access control system, or intrusion detection device installed years ago, humming along without a single update. It is a common scenario that security professionals have come to accept as "normal." But here is the reality: this mindset is actively putting organizations at risk. Read Now

New Products

  • Mobile Safe Shield

    Mobile Safe Shield

    SafeWood Designs, Inc., a manufacturer of patented bullet resistant products, is excited to announce the launch of the Mobile Safe Shield. The Mobile Safe Shield is a moveable bullet resistant shield that provides protection in the event of an assailant and supplies cover in the event of an active shooter. With a heavy-duty steel frame, quality castor wheels, and bullet resistant core, the Mobile Safe Shield is a perfect addition to any guard station, security desks, courthouses, police stations, schools, office spaces and more. The Mobile Safe Shield is incredibly customizable. Bullet resistant materials are available in UL 752 Levels 1 through 8 and include glass, white board, tack board, veneer, and plastic laminate. Flexibility in bullet resistant materials allows for the Mobile Safe Shield to blend more with current interior décor for a seamless design aesthetic. Optional custom paint colors are also available for the steel frame.

  • EasyGate SPT and SPD

    EasyGate SPT SPD

    Security solutions do not have to be ordinary, let alone unattractive. Having renewed their best-selling speed gates, Cominfo has once again demonstrated their Art of Security philosophy in practice — and confirmed their position as an industry-leading manufacturers of premium speed gates and turnstiles.

  • Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden CV-7600 High Security Card Readers

    Camden Door Controls has relaunched its CV-7600 card readers in response to growing market demand for a more secure alternative to standard proximity credentials that can be easily cloned. CV-7600 readers support MIFARE DESFire EV1 & EV2 encryption technology credentials, making them virtually clone-proof and highly secure.