Report: 300B Passwords At Risk By 2020

Not all passwords are created equal, according to a new report from research firm Cybersecurity Ventures, which estimates that by 2020, hackers will have their choice of 300 billion passwords to target.

- Tom Brant

That total includes an estimated 100 billion user account passwords for things such as social media and email, as well 200 billion passwords or credentials used to log into Internet of Things (IoT) devices. So-called “privileged accounts,” used to maintain IT infrastructure, will be among the most frequently targeted, because they are stored in multiple places and provide access to entire networks of devices.