UK lawmakers are sick and tired of shitty internet of things passwords and are whipping out legislation with steep penalties and bans to prove it. The new legislation, introduced to the UK Parliament this week, would ban universal default passwords and work to create what supporters are calling a “firewall around everyday tech.”
Specifically, the bill, called The Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure Bill (PSTI), would require unique passwords for internet-connected devices and would prevent those passwords from being reset to universal factory defaults. The bill would also force companies to increase transparency around when their products require security updates and patches, a practice only 20% of firms currently engage in, according to a statement accompanying the bill.
These bolstered security proposals would be overseen by a regulator with sharpened teeth: companies refusing to comply with the security standards could reportedly face fines of £10 million or four percent of their global revenues.
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Source: The UK Just Banned Default Passwords and We Should Too
Also interesting: The Worst Passwords in the Last Decade (And New Ones You Shouldn’t Use)
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