FINAL WORD
Vinayak Sreedhar , Country Head Australia ,
ManageEngine
PassGAN has the capacity to evaluate and learn from data to become increasingly intelligent .
It ' s worth noting that similar password-cracking tools have been doing the rounds since 2017 . Contrary to popular belief , it is not a ground-breaking tool developed at the height of the generative AI , despite appearing to employ cutting-edge , passwordcracking technology .
Only when there is a data breach can these tools be used to crack passwords . Hackers don ’ t immediately obtain access to password details the moment a website is compromised ; they ' ll only be able to access the passwords ' encrypted ‘ hash ’, which isn ' t the same as accessing accounts directly . Additionally , they would need to compromise a server to access accounts and effectively breach the network .
Implementing a set of basic security hygiene procedures such as ensuring and enforcing strict password policies , compliance with NIST and GDPR regulations , incorporating MFA controls , periodic vulnerability scanning and patching of endpoints , changing passwords on a regular basis and never using the same password-can make a world of a difference .
Although password-less alternatives and biometrics have recently become all the rage , they aren ' t devoid of errors or biases . Passwords continue to be the primary and easiest method of authentication .
The consequences of password security not being taken seriously can be enormously destructive . We should strive to shore up our defenses from the very beginning – with strong passwords an important first step .
The way we can defend ourselves and the integrity of our data is by using proper password hygiene .
Our passwords are what protects us from the dark side . . . of the Internet . p
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