It’s easy for employees to reuse passwords just to make things easier for themselves; after all, why use different passwords when you have a dozen accounts to remember passwords for? Unfortunately, this habit will come back to bite you, especially if your business is ever involved in a data breach. These credentials could be put up for sale on the dark web… and that’s just the beginning of your problems.
Let’s say that a small business, maybe even one of your neighbors, just poured thousands of dollars into the latest and greatest security software and firewall system. You’re impressed… until a disgruntled employee walks in one night, nothing to stop them, and takes a hammer to the server they have behind an unlocked door. Suddenly, there’s one less small business, and there was nothing that expensive security software could do about it.
While still critical to get right, passwords aren’t nearly as secure as you would expect them to be. They can be guessed (especially if proper password practices haven’t been followed), stolen in data breaches, or phished from a well-meaning—albeit shortsighted—employee. Passwords are basically the lock built into the front door of a building. They’re enough to keep out honest people, but what about the people who are willing to go to the deep web and 3D print the master key to the type of lock you use?
Did you know that during World War II, Allied codebreakers didn’t just crack the German Enigma code with pure math? They also used clever tricks, like baiting the Germans into sending predictable messages, to expose the machine’s inner workings. History proves this approach worked then, and (unfortunately) continues to work now. This art of manipulating a system to reveal its secrets has found a new, high-tech home in the world of artificial intelligence. It’s called prompt hacking, and it’s essentially a form of digital social engineering aimed directly at the AI models businesses are starting to rely on.
It’s a familiar challenge for businesses: how do you build customer loyalty and a strong user experience while also making sure that their data is protected? Sustainable success depends on mastering this delicate balance. Instead of choosing one over the other, the goal is to optimize data protection without hindering your ability to engage customers and drive growth.