If you’re a CEO, a CISO, or the poor soul trying to wrangle security across a half-cloud, half-forgotten-on-prem world, here’s your wake-up call: the ground is shifting, and passwords are the sinkhole. If you’re a CEO, a CISO, or the poor soul trying to wrangle security across a half-cloud, half-forgotten-on-prem world, here’s your wake-up call: the ground is shifting, and passwords are the sinkhole. Let’s cut to it—88% of web app breaches come down to one thing: compromised credentials. That means most breaches aren't sophisticated cyberattacks. They're logins. Just very unauthorized ones. Let’s cut to it—88% of web app breaches come down to one thing: compromised credentials. That means most breaches aren't sophisticated cyberattacks. They're logins. Just very unauthorized ones. come down to one thing Passwords are the security equivalent of hiding a house key under the doormat. And attackers know exactly where to look. Passwords are the security equivalent of hiding a house key under the doormat. And attackers know exactly where to look. Breaches, Hype, and the Same Old Story A couple of weeks ago, an article came out—and was reposted all over the place—saying that researchers uncovered a sprawling data leak containing 16 billion usernames and passwords tied to platforms like Apple, Google, Facebook, government services, and more. The truth is that much of this data was compromised in previous breaches and this “news” may have been an effort to instill fear or get page views. Unfortunately, hyping up security breaches leads not to action, but to apathy about password hygiene. How many times have you read about a breach and then not taken action on your own passwords? not That said, the reality is this: compromised credentials are constantly being harvested and used for phishing, account takeover, and identity theft. Once exposed, measures like password hygiene and 2FA fall dangerously short. Continued security breaches drag us into a new era of cyber risk where attackers don’t need to break in—they simply log in. Just after the “news” broke of the massive breach involving 16 billion accounts, Aflac disclosed a real attack. It had been hit by a cyberattack where hackers used social engineering to breach their network and access sensitive health and social security data. The lesson? Even large, regulated companies with robust controls can be undone by phishing and the human element. breach their network Passwords didn’t stop it. They enabled it. Why Password-Based Security Has Failed Us Mass credential theft and phishing-driven breaches highlight a systemic weakness: Problem

Impact



Infostealers

Malware harvesting credentials silently from desktops and browsers



Password reuse

One breach can domino into multiple compromised accounts



Phishing

Trick users into giving credentials—then log in



2FA limitations

SMS codes vulnerable to SIM swap, social engineering, and session hijacking Problem

Impact



Infostealers

Malware harvesting credentials silently from desktops and browsers



Password reuse

One breach can domino into multiple compromised accounts



Phishing

Trick users into giving credentials—then log in



2FA limitations

SMS codes vulnerable to SIM swap, social engineering, and session hijacking Problem

Impact Problem Problem Impact Impact Infostealers

Malware harvesting credentials silently from desktops and browsers Infostealers Infostealers Malware harvesting credentials silently from desktops and browsers Malware harvesting credentials silently from desktops and browsers Password reuse

One breach can domino into multiple compromised accounts Password reuse Password reuse One breach can domino into multiple compromised accounts One breach can domino into multiple compromised accounts Phishing

Trick users into giving credentials—then log in Phishing Phishing Trick users into giving credentials—then log in Trick users into giving credentials—then log in 2FA limitations

SMS codes vulnerable to SIM swap, social engineering, and session hijacking 2FA limitations 2FA limitations SMS codes vulnerable to SIM swap, social engineering, and session hijacking SMS codes vulnerable to SIM swap, social engineering, and session hijacking We keep layering on complexity—password managers, MFA, rotating policies—and attackers keep logging in anyway. You can’t secure a system built on something this flimsy. Imagine A World Without Passwords The answer to our collective security problems lies in an old solution with a modern take: passwordless authentication. This has been discussed before, but it bears repeating: it’s time to go passwordless—now. This has been discussed before Certificate-based authentication eliminates the need for passwords, immediately reducing your attack surface. Why? Because even if people—your employees, contractors, and vendors— inadvertently click on a phishing email, there’s no password to steal. They won’t increase vulnerability by using the same password for all their applications and devices. Passwordless solutions use digital certificates—authenticated silently and securely at login, eliminating exposure to credential theft. Benefits that Actually Matter: Phishing-proof. No passwords, no one-time passwords (OTPs), no problems.
No shared secrets. Private keys stay on the device. Period.
Users love it. No forgotten passwords. No resets. No MFA gymnastics. Just fast access.
Built for scale. Certificates can be issued, revoked, and governed centrally—and they plug into conditional access frameworks. Phishing-proof. No passwords, no one-time passwords (OTPs), no problems. No shared secrets. Private keys stay on the device. Period. Users love it. No forgotten passwords. No resets. No MFA gymnastics. Just fast access. Built for scale. Certificates can be issued, revoked, and governed centrally—and they plug into conditional access frameworks. Sound expensive or complicated? It’s not. Let’s knock down a few excuses while we’re at it. Common Excuses (And Why They Don’t Hold Up) “It’s hard to integrate with what we’ve got.”Use a flexible, cloud-native solution that plays nicely with your stack. No forklift required. “Our users will push back.”Not if the login experience is faster and simpler. People aren’t loyal to passwords—they’re loyal to what works. “We already have MFA.”MFA isn’t the same thing. Spoiler: attackers know how to bypass it, and users get tired of it. “It’s not in the budget.”Neither is a breach. Or a lawsuit. Or losing customer trust. Your data is your business. Stop gambling with it. CISOs: Time to Lead Security leaders already know passwords are a liability. The question is—what are you doing about it? Here’s your short list: Officially endorse passwordless in your strategic roadmap. Elevate its adoption from a “nice to have” to a priority plan—backed by budgets and milestones.
Run pilot programs using certificate-based authentication. Test use cases across endpoint, network, and cloud access to validate usability and interoperability. Cloud-based solutions can have you up and running very quickly.
Embrace zero trust security frameworks. Zero trust principles require strict identity verification for every user and device, regardless of location.
Educate and evangelize. Train IT and help-desk teams. Prepare employees for a seamless transition—emphasizing that enhanced security doesn’t need to degrade user experience. Officially endorse passwordless in your strategic roadmap. Elevate its adoption from a “nice to have” to a priority plan—backed by budgets and milestones. Run pilot programs using certificate-based authentication. Test use cases across endpoint, network, and cloud access to validate usability and interoperability. Cloud-based solutions can have you up and running very quickly. Embrace zero trust security frameworks. Zero trust principles require strict identity verification for every user and device, regardless of location. user and device Educate and evangelize. Train IT and help-desk teams. Prepare employees for a seamless transition—emphasizing that enhanced security doesn’t need to degrade user experience. The End of the Password (Finally) Passwords have had a good run—for attackers. Credential stuffing. Infostealers. Ransomware. Phishing. All powered by the same outdated security relic. As leaders, we don’t just react to threats—we steer the future. Passwordless authentication isn’t an experiment. It’s a requirement. And it’s ready now. The password era is over. Let’s not drag it out.

The is an opinion piece based on the author’s POV and does not necessarily reflect the views of HackerNoon.

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Passwords Are Dead. What’s Your Excuse for Still Using Them?

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