Choosing and Creating Rock-Solid Passwords

Password SecurityPhoto byKaleb / Adobe Stock

A 2019 study found that, on average,people use70–80 passwordsfor all their accounts.That means they must create umpteen secure patterns for protection.The task can be tedious, prompting avoidable mistakes that put accounts at risk.These reliable tips can help you create rock-solid passwords that are harder to crack.

Password security mistakes to avoid

Reusing passwords

Statistics show thatknowing that reusing passwords is a bad ideadoesn’t stop 65%of people from doing so.Some imagine adding a couple of characters or numbers at the beginning or end will suffice.But password reuse is always a negative choice.It helps hackers get inside several accounts, saving them time and energy.

Using generic passwords

If your password is easy to remember, it might be easy for hackers to guess.A NordPass studydiscovered that “password”was in the top five popular passwords in 2020.Other top passwords include “12345,” “123456,” “qwerty,” and “123456789.”

Using dates as passwords

Yet another common password choice mistake is usingcentral datesas passwords.It’s easy for hackers to check online sites and uncover them.For example, hackers can find your date of birth, wedding anniversary, andpartner’s birthday.So guessing your password is a cinch if you use them.

Undervaluing accounts

Thirty-six percent of peoplechoose weak passwordsbecause they think their accounts are unattractive to hackers.You may think likewise when you don’t make financial transactions on sites.But your email address is super-valuable for hackers.Whenever you create an account, you provide data hackers want for nefarious purposes.

Making passwords from your name

Fifteen percent of individualsuse their first nameas a password.Your name, first or second, is even easier for hackers to find online compared to your email address.The chances are, if they target you, they already know it anyway.

Making a password from your employer’s name or a company name

Thirty-seven percent of participants in a Keeper Security study said theyused an employer’s nameas a work-related password.Doubtless, many use business names when creating passwords too.

How to create rock-solid passwords

First, ensure you avoid the mistakes mentioned.Second,use long passwords.For instance,“Ilovesongbirdsdoyoutoo”is safer than 4Tb£a3 because it has more characters.Change it to “ILoveSongbirdsDoYouToo,” and the capital letters strengthen your password.

To armor-clad your password, you could change it to “ILove5SongBirdsDoYouToo!”Here, you include the number 5 and the character!Get the picture?Think of something memorable and then tweak it to make it more complex.

Only make it memorable to you alone, not a well-known phrase.“HumptyDumptySatOnTheWall,” is easier for hackers to crack than“1ChocIcecreamIsFab!”You’ll remember the latter if you love chocolate ice cream, but a hacker will be none the wiser.

Further and alternative security protection

You can use apassword managerto handle your passwords.It’ll store them for you, so there’s no need to remember them.Doing so will reduce the odds you’ll record them in a notebook people might see.

Other safety procedures include signing into accounts withpasswordless authenticationand SMS-based authentication.Or you can use facial or fingerprint recognition.

Unsurprisingly, people often suffer frompassword fatigue.With so many passwords to remember, it’s tempting to create weak words rather than secure ones.But you can generate rock-solid, memorable passwords with these tips and reduce the chances of a security breach.