The psychology of human error in password management

Human error defines the mistakes people unintentionally make. Mistakes can vary from forgetting the keys inside and shutting the door behind to more serious – car accidents caused by distracted drivers.

The workplace is not an exception. No matter how professional the staff is and what expertise employees have, human error is a factor that can be decreased but not avoided.

Costly risks in password management

Human error causes serious security challenges in sensitive data and password management. This year the cost of the data breach reached $4.24 million on average per incident – the highest expense within more than a decade.

For companies that store critical data (of their clients, business partners, internal systems), unintentional human mistakes can be directly linked to financial liabilities or losses.

How do hackers exploit human error ?

A cybercriminal will always be around the corner to exploit weak points in a company’s cybersecurity. It is financially valuable.

• Social engineering techniques are among the most popular types of cybercrime. They are almost always caused by humans involuntarily falling into a well-planned scam. The attacks include phishing, ransomware, pretexting, spear-phishing, and others. Social engineering is based on psychological manipulation, so the employee is tricked into giving away sensitive information.

• Poor password hygiene is another common way a hacker can take advantage of. If employees reuse passwords on a few platforms or they do not comply with complex password requirements (capital letters, symbols, special characters, length, etc.), cybercriminals can quickly exploit this vulnerability. Compromised passwords are still the leading cause of successful data breaches in the market.

• Granting access to critical resources, sending emails to someone outside the organization, and other accidental behavior always cause embarrassing and, worst case, financial and reputation losses.

Understanding the psychology of human erro r in the password management field can serve as reliable prevention and minimization of the risks.

Factors behind human error in cybersecurity

First, it is in human nature to make mistakes. The staff might be the acknowledged experts in their area, but that does not mean they are competent in cybersecurity.

According to the IMB Cyber Security Intelligence Index Report:

“ Human erro r was a major contributing cause in 95% of all breaches.”

And although the statistics point out humans as the weakest link in business security, there is no need to blame employees. There are underlying reasons why those mistakes happen:

• Stress. According to the survey by Tessian, 52% of respondents admitted they make most mistakes when they are under pressure, feeling stressed.
• Fatigue. Tiredness, overwork, and burnout are the top reasons (93% of respondents) why people unintentionally send emails to the wrong person.
• Distraction. Another research suggests that almost half of employees ( 47%) explained falling for email-based scams because of distraction.
• The quick pace of work. More than a third of surveyed people ( 36%) indicated that fast pace at work, multitasking, and work overload are the top reasons why they made accidental mistakes in cybersecurity.

Recognizing these underlying factors is the first vital step in minimizing the quantity and significance of staff mistakes.

How to minimize human error in password management?

Risk prevention should always start with a human-first approach. That is, understand the struggles in the work environment and provide employees with the help, tools, and support to overcome them.

Employee training is among the most efficient methods to minimize security mistakes. The training should include recognizing social engineering techniques, following password hygiene, and teaching how to use the tools for automating password management processes.

Then, considering that stress and fatigue are among the dominant mistake factors, it is recommended to ensure additional cybersecurity support during the more intense work periods. This way, each time there is more pressure, the staff would have a person to consult or get help with any security-related questions.

Minimization of human error is about understanding struggles that employees face daily and providing the means to work as securely as possible. Prevention always pays off more than suffering from a cyber attack.