Using a password manager works, as it can generate and remember good passwords for you. A strong password is the key to avoiding the most common form of identity theft. But even though you use a password manager, you need to create a password manager’s right password and recall it. We all know we need to use robust passwords. But when you look at the most widely used passwords, it becomes evident that so many of us have a misguided mindset towards the protection of our passwords. There are many cool features for password managers, such as a security monitor, a password changer, and a lot more. You will make sure to use good passwords everywhere if you are concerned about protection, and the best way to handle them is with a password manager.
How to create a strong password
- Use 12 or more Characters: You need to pick a long enough password. Everyone decides on a minimum password length, so you can usually go with passwords that are at least 12 to 14 characters long. Even easier will be a longer password.
- Includes Numbers, Symbols, Capital Letters, and Lower-Case Letters: To make the password challenging to break, use a combination of multiple types of characters. A random letter generator can help you create a password that is difficult for cybercriminals to guess. The generator combines letters, numbers, symbols, capital letters, and lower-case letters to form the password you need. This makes it unique and harder to crack.
- Should not be a Dictionary Word or Combination of Dictionary Words: Keep away from specific dictionary terms and dictionary word combinations. Any time is terrible on its own. Any mixture of a few words is also wrong, especially if they are apparent. For instance, “house” is an awful password. “Red House” is evil, too.
- Do not Rely on Obvious Substitutions: Don’t use common substitutions, either “H0use” is not powerful, for instance, only because you replaced an o with a 0. That is just easy.
How to remember your password
- Create your password from a sentence: People recall sentences and song lyrics much more than they remember random letters, numbers, and symbols. Taking the first letter of and word in a long and unforgettable sentence is one trick to create the right password and then adding upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and a few symbols to generate the password.
- Treat your keyboard like a constellation: A blank canvas is your keyboard, ready to help you generate your best password yet. Draw meaningful trends, including letters and numbers, around the keyboard (using your imagination, not a permanent marker). The shapes may be your initials, your first name, or a geometrical shape like your beloved constellation to create your password of choice.
These two strategies can create random and safe passwords and as simple to remember as your favorite album or constellation. Experts also advocate turning on multi-factor authentication in addition to solid passwords. Many websites, including Dropbox, Gmail, and most banking websites, offer multi-factor authentication today. While there is no fool-proof way to deter hackers from breaching your data or identity, taking a few quick steps decreases your vulnerability dramatically.
Additional security tips surrounding passwords.
When on public Wi-Fi, use a VPN. With a VPN, no one can intercept your username and password as you log in to your accounts. Never give someone your password by text or email. Choose hard-to-guess choices that only you know the answer to while choosing security questions when building an account. With a quick scan, several questions have easy-to-find social media responses, so beware and carefully pick. Take the time to tell your family and friends to defend themselves, too, when you are done. Breaches continue to happen, so you will be encouraging your inner circle to protect themselves only by posting this blog post with friends and relatives. Verify that the antivirus is up to date. If a danger slips through your solid defenses somewhere and into your system, it will be detected and neutralized by a decent antivirus.
How does a password get hacked
There are many password-hacking techniques open to cybercriminals, but the simplest one is buying the passwords from the dark web. There is a lot of cash on the black market to buy and sell login codes and passwords, and if you have been using the same password for many years, chances are it has been compromised. Even if you were smart enough to keep the credentials off the black-market aggregate lists, cybercriminals would have to hack them. And if that is the scenario, they are bound to use one of the following processes. These attacks can threaten the existing accounts or perhaps a compromised hashed password database. To crack passwords, dictionary attack tools are downloaded by an attacker first. With a list of passwords, this piece of code can try to log in several times. After an effective attack, hackers also post passwords. As a result, with a quick Google search, it is easy to find lists of the most common passwords.
Conclusion
Just remember—it is not all about password strength. If you re-use the password at different sites, it could be compromised, and people can enter the other accounts with the leaked password. It is also necessary to use unique passwords for any location or app, stop phishing pages, and keep your device secure from password-capturing malware. Yeah, people can select the right password, but you need to do more than that. It will not keep you safe from all the attacks out there by using better passwords, but it is a decent first step.