We create and manage our own passwords, and we have a responsibility to ensure that those passwords do not increase VA information security vulnerabilities. Access control systems using passwords have been around for many years and little has changed. However, the level of threat we face today has grown. Just a year ago it was widely accepted that internal threats accounted for an overwhelming majority of computer security incidents. Today, according to a recent FBI computer crime study, outsider threat is greater.
Hacking tools are now commonplace on the Internet.
A simple web search reveals hundreds of sites dedicated to hacking. Many of those sites include software libraries of nefarious tools. Password cracking software is one of the most prevalent and useful tools in the hacker's arsenal. Most people choose a name of a loved one, a variation of their own name, the kind of car they drive, a sport or hobby, or a word with some religious significance. The first thing the password cracking program does is try all combinations of your username and name.