What Happens When Credentials Get Stolen?

Updated on April 18, 2024.

Credentials are unique sets of attributes that identify an entity such as a person, organization, machine or service. You often use credentials to access your personal information. However, cybercriminals will use cyber attacks to steal your credentials and gain unauthorized access to your accounts. They can then steal your sensitive information and commit fraud. If your credentials are stolen, you could lose sensitive data, lose money and have your reputation ruined. 

Continue reading to learn more about credential theft, the effects of credential theft, how credentials get stolen and how to protect your credentials from getting stolen.

What is credential theft?

Credential theft involves having your credentials stolen such as your usernames and passwords. When a cybercriminal steals your credentials, they can use them to access your accounts such as your email accounts, bank accounts or work accounts. The cybercriminal can then steal your sensitive information and commit identity theft. 

What are the effects of stolen credentials?

When a cybercriminal has stolen your credentials, they have access to your online accounts. Cybercriminals can lock you out of your accounts and use them to commit identity theft. Here are the effects of stolen credentials.

Loss of confidential information

Stolen credentials can lead to cybercriminals accessing online accounts containing sensitive information like your bank account information and Social Security number. Confidential information is valuable to cybercriminals because they can use it to impersonate you, commit fraud or sell it on the dark web. 

Financial loss

Stolen credentials can result in large financial losses. Cybercriminals can use your personal information to impersonate you and create thousands of dollars of debt, which you could be held responsible for. If your bank information is stolen, they could also drain your savings accounts.

Ruined reputation

If cybercriminals use your credentials to impersonate you and commit fraud, they could ruin your reputation. Some cybercriminals will go as far as to use your online accounts to ruin your online reputation, damaging relationships with your peers. They can also use your personal information to commit crimes under your name, potentially leaving you with a criminal record.

How credentials get stolen

Cybercriminals use a variety of methods to steal your credentials. Here are some of the most common ways credentials get stolen.

Malware

Malware is malicious software cybercriminals secretly install on a device. Once installed, malware can spy on you, alter or destroy files, damage or gain controls of your device, and steal your sensitive information. Cybercriminals will deliver malware by exploiting security vulnerabilities and using social engineering tactics to trick you into installing it. Common types of malware cybercriminals use include ransomware, spyware, viruses, worms and Trojans.

Phishing

Phishing is a cyber attack in which a cybercriminal impersonates someone you know to trick you into revealing your personal information such as your login credentials. Cybercriminals will send you an email or text message with a malicious attachment or link for you to click on. If you click on the malicious link, you either download malware on your device or are taken to a spoofed website where you are prompted to give up your login credentials.

Man-in-the-middle attack

Man-in-the-Middle (MITM) attacks are a type of cyber attack where cybercriminals intercept transmitted data between two exchanging parties. Cybercriminals rely on fabricated or public WiFi networks because they are unencrypted. Public WiFi allows them to see any connected internet traffic. During MITM attacks, cybercriminals will place themselves between the two exchanging parties to eavesdrop, steal or modify the exchanged data. If you use unencrypted WiFi networks to log in to your online accounts, cybercriminals can use the open network to view and steal your login credentials.

Password attack

Password attacks are a type of cyber attack in which cybercriminals try to guess or steal your login credentials and gain unauthorized access to your accounts. Cybercriminals rely on weak or reused passwords to easily crack them and compromise your online accounts. They often use automated tools to try thousands of possible combinations until they find one that works. Common password attacks that cybercriminals use to guess the login credentials of online accounts include brute force, password spraying, credential stuffing and dictionary attacks.

How to protect your credentials from getting stolen

You need to protect your credentials from getting stolen to prevent identity theft and ensure your online security. Here are the ways you can prevent your credentials from getting stolen.

Secure accounts with strong, unique passwords

To prevent your login credentials from getting stolen from password attacks, you need to secure your accounts with strong and unique passwords. Strong passwords are both long and complex, making them difficult for cybercriminals to crack. Passwords should also be unique to prevent cybercriminals from compromising multiple accounts that reuse the same password. You can also use passphrases to secure your accounts. A passphrase is a string of random and unrelated words used as a password.

Consider using a password manager to easily manage all of your passwords. A password manager is a tool that securely stores and manages your login information in a digital vault. Your password vault is protected by multiple layers of encryption and can only be accessed with a strong master password.

Use passkeys

A passkey is a cryptographic key used to log in to accounts without requiring you to enter a password. Passkeys are more secure than passwords because they are phishing-resistant and are not vulnerable to password-related attacks. Even if a company experiences a data breach, you wouldn’t have to worry about a passkey being exposed. Although passkeys are more secure than passwords, they are not universally accepted and are only supported on a few websites currently. You should use passkeys to protect your accounts whenever possible.

Enable MFA whenever possible

Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA) is a security protocol that requires you to provide additional factors of authentication to gain access to your accounts. When MFA is enabled, you must provide your login credentials along with at least one other form of identification to access your account. Examples of MFA include Time-Based One-Time Password (TOTP) and biometric authentication. MFA helps provide extra layers of security for online accounts by ensuring only authorized users can access them. Even if your login credentials were compromised, cybercriminals could not access your account because they would not be able to provide the additional authentication.

Install antivirus software

Cybercriminals often try to infect your device with malware to steal your login credentials. To protect your login credentials from getting stolen from malware, you need to install antivirus software. Antivirus software is a program that detects, prevents and removes known malware from your device. It will scan your device to find and remove any hidden malware. 

Use a VPN

A Virtual Private Network (VPN) is a service that protects your internet connection and online privacy by encrypting your internet connection and masking your IP address. A VPN makes your online data unreadable and untraceable by cybercriminals. By creating a private, encrypted network within the public network, VPNs ensure cybercriminals cannot collect your online data and steal your login credentials through methods such as MITM attacks.

Invest in a dark web monitoring tool

A dark web monitoring tool scans the dark web to see if your personal information or login credentials are found. If the tool finds any of your personal information on the dark web, it will alert you. From there, you can take action to change your compromised passwords before a cybercriminal gains access to your accounts.

How Keeper® protects your credentials from getting stolen

You need to protect your credentials from getting stolen to prevent cybercriminals from accessing your personal information. The best way to protect your credentials from getting stolen is by storing them in a password manager. A password manager keeps your credentials safe from unauthorized access.

Keeper Password Manager is protected with zero-trust security and zero-knowledge encryption, ensuring that only you have access to your information and no one else.