Before talking about credential stuffing, let’s start with a question. What actions would your company take after one of the cloud platforms you use suffered a leak of login credentials?
To begin, all parties involved with the victim of this leak need to change their platform access credentials (among many other actions they have to take to manage the incident and its consequences).
However, changing the access credentials may not address the root of the problem; the attacker still has exploitable credentials to access other platforms within the organization.
These attacks are known as credential stuffing, and in this blog post, we will tell you what they are and how you can prevent them.
What is credential stuffing?
Credential stuffing is a type of attack similar to brute force attacks. In this type of cyber attack, large bulks of compromised credentials obtained after a data breach are used to access systems or networks.
What’s the catch in this type of cyber attack?
Users often use the same or similar passwords across all the accounts they manage. As a result, a single set of credentials can give the attacker access to more than one platform.
For instance, 20% of data breaches today occur using compromised credentials; this makes them the favorite weapon for cybercriminals; this means that using them repeatedly and carelessly is nothing but an invitation to malicious intruders.
What is the cost of a credential stuffing attack?
Being considered a potential data breach, according to IBM Security’s 2021 Cost of a Data Breach Report, a credential stuffing attack can cost companies in the U.S. around 9.05 million dollars.
In this regard, and to have it as a reference of how big this cost is, the second-biggest average cost in the world is in the Middle East at 6.93 million dollars.
On the other hand, in addition to the monetary cost of fines, damage management, and remediation processes, the reputation of the company victim of this leak is also affected as an aftermath, representing a long-term monetary cost.
3 ways to prevent credential stuffing
Encourage the use of multi-factor authentication at login
Using multi-factor authentication to access the platforms used in your organization can be a good practice to protect against credential stuffing.
The platforms request this extra factor (text message, fingerprint, face recognition, etc.) after the user enters the credentials. As a result, the attack is blocked by this extra step, even when having the right access credentials.
Educate employees about cybersecurity
There is no cybersecurity software that prevents human error; this is why it becomes essential to put in place strategies that encourage good cybersecurity practices within organizations.
In addition to this, compromised credentials are the favorite cyberattack vectors for hackers. Thus it is necessary for organizations to protect themselves by educating their employees. This, in addition to using software to solve the havoc caused by possible human errors.
Consequently, improving password management by avoiding reusing passwords on different platforms, using personal data or even emails as usernames can be good ways for your employees to protect themselves.
Be always vigilant to new threats
How can you complement the strategies described above to protect your company against credential stuffing?
The use of cybersecurity software, specifically, password management tool, complements the strategies mentioned above.
Moreover, these kind of tools works with organizations of any size and industry, enabling them to handle privileged access and credentials in an easy way.
As a result, users of this software can count on deep protection to prevent attacks when the human element fails.
Is there a solution to prevent credential stuffing?
While there is no definitive solution to prevent credential stuffing, organizations should think about approaching cybersecurity from a holistic view.
How can you achieve this? First, start by encouraging good cybersecurity practices. Second, you need to complement this by using cybersecurity software such as a password management tool.
In this sense, the right password management tool for any organization looking to protect its digital integrity should be able to:
- Automatically prioritize alarms
- Automated credential management
- Monitor the activity of those accessing corporate networks
- Customizable reporting and log storage
- Access and credential management
Although the perfect password management tool, having all these features in a single tool will protect you from credential stuffing and any other related threats.
Only one tool on the market is capable of this: BeyondTrust Password Safe.
Complementing multi-factor authentication, awareness, and cybersecurity best practices with BeyondTrust Password Safe will shield your organization against dangerous threats you cannot face with cybersecurity consciousness.
At GB Advisors we offer you the training, support, and advice you need to choose and deploy the cybersecurity tool that best suits your organization’s needs. Contact us!
