Is your password secure?

• Next Level Wi-Fi control with CommandIQ
• Did you know that older devices may mean a slower Wi-Fi connection?

Follow these four basic rules for your password to be uncrackable.

Let’s face it; most users create simple passwords and think that no one will go to the effort of figuring out what that password is. However, your passwords give access to your personal kingdom of information, and you probably want to protect that to the best of your ability. That probably gets you thinking “What’s the best way to protect my online information?” The answer is strong uncrackable passwords. If you follow these four basic rules, then your password is on its way to being uncrackable.

Stay away from the obvious

This means not using any personal information such as your birthday, things you love, or a pet’s name as your password. Personal information is relatively easy to find online, especially if you’re a social media user. Other obvious passwords include using sequential numbers, such as 123456, or the word “password” as your actual password. If your password seems too obvious or easy to guess, chances are you’re probably right. The same thing goes for security questions that are included with your account. Select security questions that are not obvious to someone browsing your social media accounts and personal information.

Be unique and complex

Be sure to use a mix of characters – letters, numbers and symbols. Foe example, if your word has the letter O, you can substitute it for a zero to increase the complexity of your password. The more unique the password, the hard it is to crack. 

Use different passwords for each of your accounts

Using one password for all your accounts sounds like a great idea, right? Now you won't have to try and keep track of multiple passwords for different accounts! WRONG! This can lead to a disastrous domino effect if a hacker gets their hands on your one password. Once they have cracked into one of your accounts, it gives them access to any other accounts that share the same password. That makes their job really easy as a hacker.

The longer your password, the stronger

The longer the length of your password, the more difficult it is to break. According to a study at Georgia Tech Institute, your password should contain at least 12 characters if you want to consider your password to be secure from hackers. This may seem like a lot to remember, but it will be worth it for your online safety. 

Using these four tips and keeping your passwords private can help protect you and your online data.

In the end, it is important to realize that a password is there to protect all your data and information. Therefore, the importance of creating a strong password that can survive an attack is vital. Of course, even the strongest passwords can’t always prevent data breaches, but at least they can try. 

Share these tips with friends and family to protect them too!

Back to: Westman Blog