https://www.newscientist.com/article/2449454-forcing-people-to-change-their-passwords-is-officially-a-bad-idea/ Close Advertisement Skip to content Sign in Search the website [ ] [ ] * Events * Tours * Shop * Courses * Jobs Subscribe now Explore by section * News * Features * Newsletters * Podcasts * Video * Comment * Culture * Crosswords * | * This week's magazine Explore by subject * Health * Space * Physics * Technology * Environment * Mind * Humans * Life * Mathematics * Chemistry * Earth * Society Explore our products and services * Events * Tours * Shop * Courses * Jobs Subscribe now Subscribe now Technology Forcing people to change their passwords is officially a bad idea A US standards agency has issued new guidance saying organisations shouldn't require users to change their passwords periodically - advice that is backed up by decades of research By Matthew Sparkes 27 September 2024 [SEI_223295734] Many people struggle to think of new passwords and remember them rawf8/Shutterstock Many organisations make staff regularly change their computer passwords for security reasons. Now the US government is saying those who make and run software and online tools should stop the practice. So, what should people really be doing? The latest advice from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) isn't coming out of the blue. It is based on decades of research showing forcing website and software users to periodically change their passwords actually harms security. Read more The truth about social media and screen... Advertisement Sign up to our weekly newsletter Receive a weekly dose of discovery in your inbox! We'll also keep you up to date with New Scientist events and special offers. Sign up To continue reading, subscribe today with our introductory offers Unlock this article No commitment, cancel anytime* Offer ends 15 December 2024. *Cancel anytime within 14 days of payment to receive a refund on unserved issues. Inclusive of applicable taxes (VAT) or Existing subscribers Sign in to your account Advertisement More from New Scientist Explore the latest news, articles and features Technology Wearable devices could use your breathing patterns like a password News Subscriber-only Technology AI can steal passwords in virtual reality from avatar hand motions News Subscriber-only Technology 75 per cent of the world's top websites allow bad passwords News Free Technology Smart toilets could leak your medical data, warn security experts News Subscriber-only Popular articles Trending New Scientist articles 1 The brain has its own microbiome. Here's what it means for your health 2 Smart TVs take snapshots of what you watch multiple times per second 3 Plan to refreeze Arctic sea ice shows promise in first tests 4 Geoengineering is now essential to saving the Arctic's ice 5 AI discovers hundreds of ancient Nazca drawings in Peruvian desert 6 We now know who was cannibalised on the doomed Franklin expedition 7 Chemists discovered the first new chemical bond in more than a decade 8 Jet stream shifts are linked to fires, failed harvests and the plague 9 Jet contrails may cool the planet by day and warm it by night 10 Light has been seen leaving an atom cloud before it entered Advertisement Download the app Download on the apple apps store Download on Google play Find us on social media * Find us on Instagram Instagram * Find us on Facebook Facebook * Find us on X / Twitter X / Twitter * Find us on Tiktok Tiktok * Find us on LinkedIn LinkedIn * Find us on WhatsApp WhatsApp Subscriptions * Subscriber benefits * Gift * Student & graduate * Educational * Corporate Support * Contact us * Help * About us * Press room * Advertise * Write for us Tools * Events * Science Jobs * CoLab * Syndication * RSS feeds Legal and privacy * Complaint policy * Privacy policy * Cookie policy * Terms & conditions * Cookie Settings (c) Copyright New Scientist Ltd. Back to the top