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This blog is part of our cybersecurity basics series which you can read here.
We get how annoying it is to have SO many passwords to remember, especially considering that nowadays the average person has 150 online accounts.
In an ideal world, you should have a unique password for every online account, however, we know this isn’t the case and that most people use the same 1 or 2 passwords across all digital profiles.
Although this makes it easier to remember passwords, it also makes it incredibly easy for hackers to guess your password(s).
The combined information across all of your digital accounts can paint a pretty good picture of your life, including your bank details, address, family members, your workplace and more.
If enough of this information falls into the wrong hands, criminals could exploit your personal information to commit fraud and other crimes, including identity theft.
Therefore, it’s important you keep your information safe with secure passwords.
Choosing secure, yet memorable passwords for your accounts can be a challenge. With so many to remember, you may be tempted to use a memorable word or phrase. Such as a pet’s name, your date of birth or the street you grew up on.
Passwords should be random and hard to guess, so using information that can be easily obtainable (such as the above) should be avoided.
Examples of bad passwords for us would be:
GasWarehouse1?
Casper2022
Systemagic1999?!
The criteria for passwords can differ between websites and apps, but as a rule of thumb, we recommend that you:
A handy method to use when coming up with a secure password is the ‘passphrase method’. This method requires you to come up with a phrase you’ll find easy to remember to use as the base of your password, for example:
My favourite pub in Bradford on Avon is The Barge at Frome Road
Once you have your phrase, you’ll need to take the first two letters of each word, like this: MyfapuinBronAvisThBaatFrRo
The password above doesn’t have any numbers or special characters yet, so let’s add those now.
Myfapu1nBr0nAvi5ThBa@FrRo!
To the naked eye, this password looks like a random jumble of letters, numbers and special characters. But behind it is a phrase which is easy to remember.
A strong password is only the start to keeping your online accounts secure.
Additional security measures such as 2-Factor Authentication add an extra layer of protection and give you peace of mind.
Learn more about 2-Factor Authentication.
Founded in 1999, Systemagic has provided leading business IT support to small and medium-sized organisations across the South West for over 20 years. With award-winning customer service, leading response times and no long-term contracts, more than 350 businesses trust Systemagic to keep them online.
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