Dashlane is a password management company that specializes in protecting users' identities and online accounts by managing and creating unique passwords everywhere one venture online including securely storing payment methods for digital use. On June 22, 2017, they announced a milestone via their "Digital Wallet” which is responsible for enabling more than $10 billion dollars worth of safe digital wallet transactions.
Technology has made life much easier for the average person but, in some ways, also more perilous. Due to advances in internet scams, millions of people are at risk of falling prey to criminals who operate digitally by stealing information about accounts, passwords, and more.
Protection via strong passwords
The Dashlane "Digital Wallet" is the only universally accepted one that can be used online anywhere. Utilizing a "proprietary semantic analysis engine," it is a powerful technology that can accurately fill out forms on websites across the web. Dashlane has also released some advice for consumers regarding the importance of using strong passwords that are at least ten characters long and blend numbers and letters--and remembering to make different passwords for different accounts. Enabling some form of two-factor authentication is also strongly suggested, such as requiring your phone to unlock only with both a number code and a fingerprint. Since many internet users have dozens of accounts on different websites, a digital wallet helps individuals remember all their unique passwords.
Password problems were responsible for 63 percent of data breaches in 2016, according to one investigations report by Verizon. Likewise, in 2015, Dashlane conducted research that suggested that the average internet user might have as many as one hundred thirty different accounts, a number that is growing and highlights the need for increased protection.
“Overall, the biggest mistake we see is people use the same passwords for every login, or the passwords are too short and simple, or they have personal info that is easy to guess, or people never change them”. Ryan Merchant, the Digital Lifestyle Editor at Dashlane, stated in a recent interview.
“When you have a bad password, coupled with the practice of using that very same bad password—or a version of it—across multiple accounts, that is a hacker’s dream scenario.”
Surprisingly, password issues can affect people of all age ranges.
Although young people are most comfortable with technology and are quite internet savvy, they have a tendency to use unsecured WiFi networks. Meanwhile, older users are much more prone to falling for scammer’s ruses via pop-ups, emails, and even phone messages.
“In general, hacking is an equal opportunity issue for all ages for consumers overall who are not taking proper precautions,” Ryan Merchant explained. “Actually, since millennials tend to have more online accounts and apps that other generations, they leave a larger digital footprint and are, therefore, the most likely to fall victim to some kind of scam or malware.”
Innovative online security systems
Dashlane designed its digital wallet as a way to help users quickly streamline their online lives safely and efficiently.
It mainly aims to make online shopping easier and can also ease the process of logging in, saving digital receipts, and filling out virtual forms. The company takes security so seriously that they have been issued a U.S. Patent for the innovative security architecture.
“We implement the strongest encryption available,” Ryan declared. “We take a ‘trust no one’ approach to the safety because we never trust any server, code, or person with access to user data in order to give you the best protection. We also leverage Two Factor Authentication which requires a unique code before authorizing access on a new device.”
Ultimately, Dashlane seeks to not only protect users but also educate them about the many dangers online.
“While we see evidence of new hacks almost every day, the best way for consumers to protect themselves remains the same--they must implement robust and unique passwords across all accounts,” Ryan declared and reiterated the importance of due diligence while exploring the world wide web.
