Overview: Credential Sharing

Quick Definition

Credential Sharing refers to instances in which authorized computing systems users divulge their login credentials to colleagues or other individuals that are not otherwise authorized to use these systems. As a result, a single set of credentials may subsequently be in use by multiple real-world individuals. Credential sharing thus dilutes any protections in place to safeguard information security, multiplies the risk that system credentials eventually arrive in the hands of malicious actors, and makes attribution difficult in the case of any security incidents or data breaches that this may cause.

Credential sharing often begins as a way to circumvent software licensing controls, robbing SaaS companies or other providers of revenue while significantly harming security.