Password manager Dashlane has added a new tool to help employers gauge the online security of their employees, by assigning a score based on password practice.
With more of us working from home in 2020 than ever, company security has been a hot topic, and one of the most vulnerable points of access is poor password management.
Using the tool, employers will be able to identify and assist staff with compromised or weak passwords, to tighten security across their workforce.
New Dashlane Features
The new reporting dashboard, which according to Dashlane is an industry first, gives companies an overview of its employees password practice, even going so far as to assign every user their own unique ‘health score’. Should staff be using a compromised password, or reusing the same one on multiple sites, that health score takes a ding, with very poor scores highlighted in red.
There is also a company wide score, which is a general rating based on all the users’ accumulative scores. The idea is that as employees are encouraged to follow best practice, the company score goes up accordingly.
Staff can see their own score, but they can’t see anyone else’s. The employer has an overview of all individual scores, as well as where individuals are failing, and the last time they used the service. This means that communications regarding password management can be focused on those that most need it, and followed up too, should no action be taken.
Employers won’t be able to see the actual passwords used.
Read our guide to the best Password Managers for 2020
The Reporting Tool in Action
The company has been using their new tool in house, to test it out and hone best practice. Success is signified by gaining an ‘A’ rating in the tool, which is achieved with a score of 90 or above. Their internal roll out consisted of a company wide email outlining what a password score is, and how employees could find theirs, followed up by smaller, hands-on group sessions.
Dashlane’s IT manager has since been checking the reporting tool once a week, to see exactly what improvements have been made, and who has been taking action. After this it has been a case of following up with individuals using Slack, if needed.
This reporting gives me the power to not only ensure our organization as a whole remains more secure by snuffing out any weak points, but also by giving us the opportunity to better educate our employees on best practices they can take both in and outside of the workplace. – Jay Leaf-Clark, Head of IT at Dashlane
Should I Use A Password Manager?
A password manager is an great tool for individuals, but for companies, it’s practically a must — especially given the pandemic climate of 2020, with many staff working from home and outside the known security of office systems.
A password manager’s main use is, naturally, to help users remember passwords. But it’s the set of additional tools that they come with which makes them so essential. A good password manager will alert you to weak passwords, actively monitor the web for compromised passwords, and even help you generate robust new passwords, all without having to worry about remembering them.
A good password manager relieves both employees,and IT departments of the headaches of juggling multiple passwords, while ensuring that logins are secure and uncompromised.
