The Password’s Final Days: Why 2025 Marks a Turning Point for Identity Security

This World Password Day, the writing’s on the wall: the humble password, the linchpin of online identity for over six decades, is officially obsolete. The world’s cybersecurity leaders aren’t just calling for better passwords—they’re calling for their extinction. And according to Bojan Simic, CEO of identity security firm HYPR, that revolution is already underway.

“On this World Password Day, we’re at a pivotal juncture in identity management and IT security,” Simic says. “For the first time, we’re witnessing an actual turning point in the fight against identity-based attacks.”

It’s a turning point born from alarming numbers. Nearly 49% of organizations experienced a breach in the past year, Simic notes, with a staggering 87% of those linked to identity vulnerabilities. The financial hit? An average of $2.5 million per incident—before factoring in reputational damage and operational chaos.

But breaches aren’t just exploiting weak passwords anymore; they’re fueled by generative AI and deepfakes, weaponized at scale. A staggering 95% of organizations reported deepfake attacks, Simic says, while 40% have already faced a GenAI-driven security incident.

“The vulnerabilities are amplified by the rapid rise of generative AI threats,” Simic explains. “Traditional methods, such as passwords and legacy multi-factor authentication (MFA), cannot combat these sophisticated threats.”

Despite these escalating risks, many companies remain anchored to outdated authentication. Legacy MFA, still reliant on passwords or one-time codes vulnerable to phishing, simply can’t keep up in an era where an AI can mimic a CEO’s voice in seconds.

But there’s hope. Simic believes we’re entering what he calls The Identity Renaissance. “For the first time, passwordless, phishing-resistant authentication methods, such as FIDO passkeys, are gaining significant traction,” he says.

According to HYPR’s data, nearly 46% of organizations have already adopted these modern authentication tools, with adoption expected to surpass 70% by 2027. Passkeys, backed by public key cryptography and biometrics, render credentials useless to attackers—even if intercepted. They’re not just harder to crack; they eliminate the attack surface altogether.

“This marks a profound shift in how we approach security, moving beyond reactive measures and embracing proactive, user-friendly, and resilient solutions,” Simic says.

For decades, the cybersecurity playbook has been one of plugging holes—stronger passwords, more frequent resets, new policy mandates. But with passwordless authentication, the industry is finally removing the very doors attackers walk through.

“The stakes have never been higher, but the opportunities to innovate and safeguard our digital future have never been greater,” Simic challenges. “I call on leaders across industries to break free from outdated methods and join us in redefining identity security.”

World Password Day began as a reminder to strengthen our secrets. In 2025, it may instead mark the beginning of their end.