Over two billion passwords were leaked by hackers in 2021

Date:
Wed, 20 Jul 2022 18:10:16 +0000

Description:
More than 15 billion passwords are on sale on the dark web, report claims.

FULL STORY ======================================================================

Over the course of 2021, hackers managed to steal more than two billion passwords , a new report from ForgeRock has claimed.

The companys fourth annual breach report found that besides passwords,
hackers have also been stealing peoples names, addresses, Social Security numbers, dates of birth, protected health information (PHI), and payment or banking details.

Whats more, the two billion is an increase of more than a third (35%), compared to just two years ago. Weakest link

Most of the time, hackers sell the data on the black market, such as underground web forums and trading sites. While the passwords themselves
often arent that expensive to purchase, they do open the gates for a number
of potential attacks, from identity theft , to ransomware, and everything in between.

Two years ago, there had been more than 15 billion passwords on sale, on the dark web, the same report claims.

Usernames and passwords are the internets weakest link. The world has moved far beyond the point where a simple password can provide sufficient protection, and attackers know it. Spurred by the FIDO2 WebAuthn standard,
the move to passwordless authentication is gaining momentum: it improves both security and ease of use for online access, while greatly diminishing the usefulness of stolen credentials by cybercriminals, said ForgeRock CEO, Fran Rosch. Read more

Apple says it's game over for the password

The humble password might be old, but it's not dead or even on life

support

Struggling to come up with a strong password? Use one of these great

generators

ForgeRock believes the future is passwordless, with biometric solutions (facial recognition, fingerprint scanners, and similar) being at the forefront. Others lean more towards multi-factor authentication as the best way to protect online accounts, as time-based keys and tokens prevent those with just the password from accessing other peoples accounts.

That being said, ForgeRock expects the passwordless authentication market to grow from $12.79 billion last year, to more than $53 billion by 2030. Whether or not that actually happens, remains to be seen. The password has been pronounced dead countless times before, yet somehow, it still prevails
despite its shortcomings. Stay safe from cybercriminals with the best firewalls around

Via: VentureBeat



======================================================================
Link to news story: https://www.techradar.com/news/over-two-billion-passwords-were-leaked-by-hacke rs-in-2021/


--- Mystic BBS v1.12 A47 (Linux/64)
* Origin: tqwNet Technology News (1337:1/100)