A password is your entry into a lot of realms, and by that I mean internet portals, email, social networking, online banking, and the list goes on. But as it is a blessing, it can also be a major setback for all of us. How so? Well asides from forgetting it at times, the leakage or hacking of it can lead to some major online nuisances. No one wants their personal information to find its ways into hands of a dozen people who can do us harm, whether to our devices, computer systems, integrity, or privacy. And this is all possible at the blink of an eye thanks to PC monitoring software, keylogger, viruses, bugs, and the list of malware and spyware goes on.
So how can we save ourselves of this pain and agony? Well for one, we can get our basic line of defense in order. What am I talking about? Your password, your key, your unique gate pass into all things connected. Many of us claim we know how to go about creating strong password but most of us are actually too lazy to really get what that means. So for those of you still not being able to come up with something that keeps the baddies out, here is the anatomy of a perfect password.
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1. It has eight characters minimum. This may sound like no big deal but the longer the safer. Of course, this does not mean that it should be so long you yourself have difficulty remembering it. But a password ranging from 8 to 16 is ideal.
2. It uses both letters and numbers. This is the simplest way of putting it but it should actually have a combination of letters which are both uppercase as well as lowercase. Including spaces and other symbols such as hash, asterisk, etc also makes the password a really strong one.
3.It is not a complete word or phrase. Many people make the mistake of using complete words or phrases. These are also pretty easy for hackers to get clues of, especially if the words are based on some personal aspect of your life, for e.g, family names, months, days, etc. So even if your weak memory requires the use of familiar words mix them up or do not use them in their full form. For e.g, instead of using My Name Is Annie, use MnI@ as a kind of acronym.
4.It never lasts more than three months. The perfect password is one that gives you protection and security before it gets compromised or stale and hence has a specific lifespan. Ideally he password should not see the light of day past three months, but passwords which are changed after every four to five months cut it as well. So make sure when creating the password, you are prepared to chuck it in about a quarter of a year’s time and move on to a better one.
5.Is not the same password for other accounts. This is also very important. A password is only truly a perfect password if it is unique and is used for no other purpose then the particular site or account you are creating it for. Also, the password should not be anywhere near in similarity to the one used previously. Simply changing a letter or a number will not do the trick. Always come up with a completely different one.
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data security
password security
Technology
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