How to Prevent Credential Stuffing

A successful credential stuffing attack can have serious implications for a business. Besides straining IT resources, it can lead to downtime and lost revenue from users who are blocked from accessing systems or forced to reset their passwords. Prevent credential stuffing can also damage a brand’s reputation, as customers lose faith in a company that can’t protect their data.

What is the best solution to credential stuffing?

The number of data breaches has dramatically increased in recent years, creating a massive pool of compromised usernames and passwords available for sale or download on dark web marketplaces and forums. Many users also persist in reusing the same login credentials across multiple online platforms, making them easier for attackers to enumerate and target.

Cybercriminals use specialized software and scripts, known as “credential stuffers,” to test the stolen credentials against a website’s login page at a rate of thousands of attempts per second. This makes it very difficult for security teams to detect these attacks in real time.

There are a variety of preventive measures that can help organizations mitigate the risk of a credential stuffing attack. For example, companies can implement a dark web monitoring solution to alert them to the presence of stolen login credentials and take remedial action. They can also deploy Security Information and Event Management (SIEM) tools to look for patterns, such as repeated failed login attempts from a single location or device, that might suggest a credential stuffing attack.

Educating staff on the importance of cybersecurity can also help to reduce the chances that a company will fall victim to a credential stuffing attack. Similarly, requiring all users to log into company systems with multi-factor authentication can further reduce the risk of stolen credentials being used by attackers. It is also important for businesses to perform an Internet Presence Assessment, which can reveal vulnerable points that can be attacked by malicious code.

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