Definition and Purpose

Escrow Passwords refer to passwords that are securely stored and held in reserve—often by IT administrators or third-party systems—to allow recovery or emergency access to user accounts or systems. The practice is common in enterprise environments to ensure business continuity, particularly in cases where employees forget credentials, leave the company, or in incident response situations. While escrow passwords can be helpful, they also present a potential security risk if not properly encrypted, managed, or audited, as a breach or misuse of the stored credentials can lead to unauthorized access across multiple systems.

GateKeeper Proximity Helps Escrow Passwords

GateKeeper Proximity reduces the need for password escrow by replacing manually managed credentials with proximity-based authentication using secure wireless tokens. Instead of relying on stored passwords for account recovery or shared access, users authenticate simply by being present with their token, while administrators retain centralized control through GateKeeper Hub. This approach minimizes the attack surface created by stored credentials, streamlines access recovery, and improves compliance by reducing human handling of sensitive password data.