When it comes to Computer Security, passwords are your first line of defense. The main reason people choose bad passwords is that they are easy to remember. However, you wouldn’t leave the door to your home unlocked because it is too much of a hassle to unlock it before you open the door. A weak password is the same thing.
Using dictionary words in any language make cracking your passwords much easier. Even adding numbers to dictionary words doesn’t increase the strength of your passwords at all. Also, character replacements like capital letters and non-alphanumeric symbols, will not give you a strong password.
A real strong password consists of 8 or more characters and part of a passphrase. A passphrase consists of a phrase that has special meaning to you, therefore making it easier to remember. For example:
I Love Kittens and Puppies. They are Cute!
A simple approach to create a better password is to take the first letter of each word in your passphrase which will give you:
ilkaptac
That looks fairly random and hard password to crack. But why not make it harder by using punctuation from the sentence?
ilkap.trc!
It is a much stronger password to crack. Let’s make it even stronger by capitalizing some letters & adding numbers.
ILKaP.TaC!
Now it is a quite difficult password to crack but is still easy to remember. To make it even stronger, you can salt it with non-alphanumeric character replacements for greater difficulty. For example, replacing an “a” with a “&” will give you:
ILK&P.TaC!
Do’s and Don’ts of Password Security:
Do’s:
- Combine letters, symbols, and numbers that are easy for you to remember and hard for someone else to guess.
- Create pronounceable passwords (even if they are not words) that are easier to remember, reducing the temptation to write down your password.
- Try using the initial letters of a phrase you love, especially if a number or special character is included.
- Take two familiar things, and then wrap them around a number or special character. Alternatively, change the spelling to include a special character.
Don’ts:
- Use personal information such as derivatives of your user ID, names of family members, maiden names, cars, license plates, telephone numbers, pets, birthdays, social security numbers, addresses, or hobbies.
- Use any word in any language spelled forward or backward.
- Tie passwords to the month. For example, don’t use “Mayday” in May.
- Create new passwords that are substantially similar to ones you’ve previously used.
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