CypherCon 2025

Lost in Transliteration: Hidden Passwords in a Multilingual World

Juan Pablo Gomez Postigo

Abstract:

This talk explores how transliteration impacts password creation, focusing on how technical limitations and language backgrounds influence the way people choose passwords. It covers the challenges these factors create, making these passwords more complex to crack.

Importance: I’m writing this talk because languages fascinate me, and it’s important to highlight how certain technical limitations and standard implications affect users who do not primarily speak English. This talk helps highlight the types of passwords that non-native English speakers end up selecting as a result of technical limitations on modern password implementations.

Juan Pablo Gomez Postigo

Passwords were meant to be cracked!

Juan Pablo (JP) Gomez Postigo is a Penetration tester at Sprocket Security. As a graduate from Marquette University with a degree in BioComputer Engineering, JP has been immersed in the world of cybersecurity for the past three years and is also a member of the US Cyber Games Pipeline Program. When he’s not breaking things, JP enjoys archery, running, rock climbing, and 3D printing in his workshop.