on z4fan
Often, there is surely only one thing standing between your
sensitive information and criminals, your password. If they get it, they can
get into /
bank accounts and private files and wreak havoc. For this reason, it’s important
to know what makes a password strong and secure. This is / Secure Passwords Explained
by Common Craft.
Chances are, you use passwords every day. To
open your computer, log on your favorite websites, to get work done. The easy route
is to have a simple password that works everywhere. Unfortunately, this can be a problem. Criminals
are very good at guessing passwords. Some have computer programs that can make
millions of guesses until something works. And if they already know information
about you, it is even easier. Your job is to create a password that is very
hard to guess. Here’s how.
Your first thought may be to use a pet's
name, a birth date, an address or part of a phone number. These things are too easy for criminals to
discover. So don't use them. Your password should not include information about
you.
Thankfully, there are ways to
have memorable but hard-to-guess passwords. Consider this, in addition to
single words, phrases can also be easy to remember. Maybe it’s a
favorite song lyric or quote. An example / is "Jack and Jill went up the hill". That's
easy to remember, right? Well, your password is there. It’s the first letter of each word. In
this example, this will be your password. That's not something that is easily
guessed. Here is why.
First, it’s not in the dictionary. This makes
guessing it harder. There are about 60,000 words in English. A computer can test out
those words pretty quickly, so don't use them. But there's more. This password could still
be stronger by adding upper-case letters, numbers or special characters. So now
this is a very strong password, but there is still a risk. If you write it
down, be careful where you keep it .Be aware that somebody can look over your
shoulder or find it in your trash. Giving it to / loved-ones is also risky. They may not be as
cautious as you are. Only you should know your password.
Criminals may also try to fool you into
handing it over via phone calls. Never tell anyone your password over the
phone. And be careful when you get an email that asks for a password. It could
be a scam. To help avoid problems, don't use the same password everywhere, that's
like having one key that unlocks everything you own. The stakes are high if you
lose it. Also, be careful if you use a computer that is not yours. Let's
say you check email using a computer in a store, library or computer lab. You log in, check
email and walk away. The next person to use that computer now has access to
your email account and all the information in it. Always remember to log out of
each site you visit
on a
computer that isn't yours.
Passwords are an essential part of life online,
and if we’re
not careful about keeping them secret, they can cause big problems. By
understanding the risks, and making passwords stronger, we can feel a little
more secure.
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