Your passwords are sometimes the only protection of your privacy against a malicious hacker.

Usernames and passwords are quickly becoming the sole way we maintain privacy and security of our sensitive information. We exist in a world where everything you do requires some form of password, whether it be getting into your online banking, logging onto social media, or entering a passcode to get into your phone. As we continue moving towards a virtual world, it is more apparent that most of our personal information lies in our hands phone applications and online presence. For this reason, it is important that people know the importance of a secure password and the dos and do nots to ensure credentials and sensitive information is not leaked.

4 Tips to creating an uncrackable password.

Use a phrase.

• Around 12 letters long.
• Something simple to remember, but hard to crack.
• Can integrate things you like or do to make it more memorable.

Keep each account unique.

• Never use the same password more than once.

Play with spellings.

• Use Homonyms
• Two instead of to Ant instead of Aunt

Random capitalizations

• Use numbers and capitalizations but keep it memorable.
  • If you go overboard, your password will be impossible to remember.
  • Idea: Can use a capital letter on the second word of every password
  • Idea: Can use the same number behind the first word of every password

4 ways you should NEVER try to make a secure password.

• Use your name, family members' names, important dates, special places visited.
  • These can be extremely easy for hackers to figure out, especially through social media.
• Writing down your passwords
  • Writing your passwords can lead to it getting misplaced or taken, and your accounts may be at risk.
• Using the same passwords for multiple accounts
  • If one of your accounts gets hacked this means any other accounts with a similar password are at risk too. It is important to vary your passwords so that they are hard to figure out indefinitely.
• Enter a password over an insecure network.
  • Always make sure that you are on a verified site or application when putting in a password. If it is a replication of another site or a fake site entirely hackers can use the login information you entered assist in getting into your other accounts.

Why is it important to have a strong password?

Many people get scared to create a unique and secure password because they fear they will forget what it is. Creating a simple password or a password similar to others can seem like a good idea but what people overlook is that the risk of forgetting your password is not even comparable to the risks associated with a password that is not highly secure. We hope that by following some of the simple tips above you can now feel safe knowing your personal information won’t get into the wrong hands. Another layer of security we recommend (but require for our clients) is having a second line of defense such as a MFA (multi-factor authentication), which creates a second layer of security between you and your accounts. If you have any questions on how to better protect your information, please call Usherwood Office Technology at 800-724-2119 or click here to submit your email address for more information.