On World Password Day, let’s start embracing a passwordless future

On a day meant to promote good password habits, it is as good a time as any to reconsider if the decades-old way for authentication is still the way to go for a seamless, secure digital future.

As the key to the front door for many of today’s online services, passwords come with many disadvantages that have been exposed in recent years.

They are vulnerable to brute-force attacks when hackers use software to try millions of combinations of usernames and passwords until they find a match.

Plus, people often reuse passwords across multiple accounts, which increases the risk of a data breach. It doesn’t help that passwords are a pain to remember and manage, which leads to poor password hygiene.

This was why cybersecurity experts had conceived World Password Day – the first Thursday of every May – to remind users of the importance of keeping their passwords secure. This idea originated from 2013.

Today, however, more businesses are transitioning to a passwordless authentication system, because it not only improves security but also the user experience.

Passwordless authentication methods, such as biometric authentication, are more secure than traditional passwords because they are unique to each user. They cannot be easily replicated or stolen.?

At the same time, passwordless authentication eliminates the risk of password reuse, making it harder for hackers to access multiple accounts with the same stolen password.

A passwordless system also improves the experience for users, something that has been sacrificed all too often in the name of tougher security.

Instead of complex combinations of letters, numbers and symbols, which often lead to confusion and frustration, passwordless authentication is more seamless and user-friendly. Users can authenticate themselves much more quickly.

Don’t forget the administrative costs of maintaining passwords, either. Password resets and account lockups are frequent issues that IT help desks are inundated with.

That time can be freed up so these teams can work on more critical tasks, such as making sure the networks are running optimally or even hunting cybersecurity threats that may be lurking in their systems.?

To be sure, switching over to a passwordless system is not easy. This is like changing the locks on your door at home, which requires careful consideration and tests to ensure the new setup is sound and runs as expected.

Perhaps a bigger issue is familiarity. For many users and even business leaders, passwords may seem more secure and trustworthy, simply because they have used the traditional system for decades. Psychology plays a big part here.

This entrenched mindset has to change because the switch to passwordless authentication will be even more important in the years ahead.

The technology has been around and is mature and capable today. This is why organizations have started adopting passwordless systems, even though they are doing so at a different pace.

Some chief security officers (CSOs) move everyone quickly over to drive new applications with passwordless authentication, before gradually sweeping up the traditional applications afterwards.?

Others may consider decommissioning legacy applications altogether as they seek a platform change that aligns all their services to a passwordless authentication system.

Either way, the future has to be one where users are no longer encumbered with remembering a series of passwords for a system that is far from secure or seamless. Passwordless is the way to go.

So, let’s take the right and safe approach for cybersecurity, drawing inspiration from Star Wars Day, which also falls on May 4th. As they say in a galaxy far, far away, May the Force be with you in your endeavours to go #passwordless .