We runned yet another Password Usage Bahaviour survey on our Web site and gthered statistically significant data, reflected in the following charts. And the main conclusion was that most people working with sensitive information want stricter security policies but rarely bother changing default passwords.

XKCD posted quite nice comics with a reallife problem behind them. It is very likely that some Web-services do as described, either sell such info to third parties or use it for evil purposes. Our recommendation is if you cannot trust some of the websites, choose another unique password for them. It would be even wiser if you had different passwords for all websites you visit. Some even unimportant websites can aslo be cracked and even if they (better to say your data stored there) have no value at all, your password, can be tried for Facebook or LinkedIn, hopefully in vain.

Hello! Yet again, we have launched a survey on password usage behavior.

German law has always been strict about any possible security breaches. This week German court ordered that anyone using wireless networks should protect them with a password so the third party could not download data illegally.  

About a month ago, a SQL Injection flaw was found in the database of RockYou.com, a website dealing with social networking applications. The Tech Herald reports that 32.6 million passwords were exposed and posted online due to the flaw. The complete examination of the passwords from the list showed that the passwords in question are not only short as RockYou.com allows creating 5-character-passwords but also alphanumeric only.

In brief, here is the "problem": for years (I think starting from Windows 3.0 released almost 20 years ago), the passwords are being masked as you type them (in most programs what have any kind of password protection, and an operating system itself), i.e. replaced with asterisks or black circles. What for? To prevent the password from being read by someone who stands behind you.

Securing home Wi-Fi remains uncertain when it comes to law. Some urge users are not liable when they use default security settings and it is manufacturer who is guilty when/if wireless network was ‘successfully’ abused. Others put whole responsibility on users. This is practically a question to law and usually its resolution depends on lawyers’ skills to gather and manipulate the details. Your security encompasses not only security against the law when you happen to fall a victim to an intruder, but also protection against that very intruder. In the long run, it’s up to you whether to endeavor to prove your innocence or take measures to build a reliable fence.

ElcomSoft is launching a survey intended to collect more information on how people handle their passwords, which remain a major way for user authentication. Whether you are ElcomSoft customer or haven’t seriously thought about password security, we hope you will answer our questions.