Good Passwords

Internet Security
Internet Security

A good reminder about passwords is important from time to time:

1) Passwords should be six characters or longer.

2) Incorporate random capital letters, swaps letters for numbers (like vanity license plates) and includes a symbol or two. The password “password” (which you should not use) is much stronger as “r1Va’5paZZw8rD.”

3) Don’t use names of pets, children or streets. It’s better to use a phrase, song lyric or line from a poem as the base. “Hey Jude, don’t make it bad” could become “d9n’Tmak%6aad.” Base the password on the first letter of each word, turning the lyric into “HJ,dmi6.”

For more, read Microsoft’s advice.

For those of you with Macs, get 1password, it is a program that saves all your passwords and backs them up.  That way, you will never forget a password.

To make things easier, use the same username for everything.

And the security wonks aren’t going to like the next thing I’m going to say:  Here’s the main thing.  If what you are doing isn’t about money, use the same password for everything.  It’s not worth trying to remember.

But with 1password you don’t have to.  I use an independently generated 26 alfa-numeric  password for everything.  1password is a beautiful thing.

Mark

Published by Mark

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