Passwords for online banking, email and other services remain
weak despite the increased threat of cybercrime, research has
shown.
Some 83% of people use their date of birth, maiden or pet name
as a security password for online accounts, research by
people search firm Yasni has
found.
This statistic strengthens the case for the use of encryption on
company data of all types, said Michael Callahan, vice president of
security firm Credant Technologies.
"Despite all the issues surrounding cybercrime and the theft of
personal data, human nature is such that simple and easy to
remember passwords remain the norm," he said.
According to Callahan, the fact that so many people are using
data that can easily be extracted from public records or even the
Internet is extremely worrying.
"If that approach is transposed to a business environment, it
makes company security very weak indeed," he said.
The head of
Heartland Payment Systems, which was hit by a massive data breach
last year, has recently
called for industry collaboration including encryption to combat
cybercrime attacks.
Cybercriminals gained access to potentially millions of credit
card transaction details after planting spy software on Heartland
systems.
Heartland chief executive Robert Carr is advocating the adoption
of data encryption throughout the payments industry, as well as
improved and safer standards of payments.