Is your password is secure enough?

Just because a device is new does not mean it’s safe

Real Facts about the passwords:

1. These five user passwords accounted for 3.2 million of the 130 million accounts that were stolen in the Adobe hack of 2013: 

“123456,” 

“12345678,” 

“Password,” 

“Adobe123” and 

“12345678.”

2.  Two-thirds of people use no more than two passwords for all their online accounts.

3.  73% of users have the same password for multiple sites, 33% use the same password every time.

4.  Numbers that are used in passwords are usually the numbers ‘1’ or ‘2’ and are placed at the end of the password.

5.  Women use personal names for passwords frequently.

6.  Men use their hobbies for passwords frequently.

7.  The average internet user has 25 online accounts, 6.5 passwords and waits an average of 3.1 months before changing passwords.

The issue of protection and privacy has risen to the forefront. While only 250,000 users were affected by the recent security attacks – a drop in the ocean since the site has roughly 200 million active users. Protecting your social media accounts is vital if you don’t want them falling into the wrong hands.

Here are a few password protection facts and tips on how to create a secure presence for yourself online.

- A Strong Password to Protect your Online Accounts

• Include punctuation marks and/or numbers

• Mix capital and lowercase letters

• Use substitutions like the number zero for the letter ‘O’ or ‘3’ for the letter ‘E’

• Try a passphrase with more than eight characters (eight character passwords are no longer good enough)

- Avoid a Weak Password, :

• Do not reuse the same password for at least a year.

• Do not use the same passwords for multiple accounts.

• Do not use a password with Personal Information (name, birth date, etc.).

• Do not use keyboard patterns (QWERTY, ASDFG) or sequential numbers (12345).

• Do not make your password all numbers, uppercase letters or lowercase letters—Mix it up!

• Do not use repeating characters (444FFF).

- Use a Password Generator to Develop Strong Passwords

• If you’re having trouble coming up with a strong password, use a free and trusted password generator like Symantec’s Secure Password Generator.

• The generator will randomly select letters, numbers.

- Use Password Strength Tools to Help You Create the Best Passwords

• If you’re unsure about the quality of your password, run it through a strength test.

• Microsoft’s Password Checker is free and easy to use.

• BEWARE, however, of entering your password into untrusted sources online.  These sites could be phishing for your passwords and stealing them from you.

- Keep Your Password Secure

• Never reveal your password to anyone.

• Test and change your password regularly.

• Be suspicious of links asking for a logins, passwords, or personal information. If you’re unsure if the site is legitimate, type in the URL manually before entering account information.

• Call any company that emails you seeking personal information. Legitimate companies will never request personal information from you via email.

• Always log off especially if your device is turned on around other people. Password theft can happen in an instant.

• Don’t type your password into public computers (at business centers, hotels, coffee shops, etc.) MALWARE is rampant among public computers and the likelihood that your password is stolen is much higher.

Friends, If you liked this article then do not forget to hit Like button. Follow me.