Maximizing Your Business and Personal Information Security: The Importance of Strong Passwords
In today’s technologically driven business marketplace, one of the most often overlooked points of vulnerability to your business and personal information security is your password strength or weakness. These are the passwords you define for usage when logging into your computer network, email provider, online banking, accounting, or payroll applications. To underestimate the importance of strong password strength is to leave the door wide open to identity theft and corporate piracy. Your passwords must be a robust combination of all available characters, must be unique for different applications, and must not be a word commonly found in any dictionaries, in any language.
How Do You Maximize Your Business and Personal Information Security?
We have been conditioned to use weak passwords. For many people, the first password we ever needed was for our ATM cards, limited to the numerals on the keypad (0-9). That simply will not cut it anymore. Malicious computer deciphering programs can run through all possible combinations in a matter of seconds. The same types of programs can run through all the words in the dictionary, plus most common names, in multiple languages—even spelled backwards—in a matter of minutes. You cannot have the same password for all your password needs; if that one password were to get compromised, all your sensitive private data would be at risk.
How Do You Come Up with Strong Passwords That You Can Actually Remember?
A good method is to come up with a phrase that is meaningfully unique to you, making it something you will likely remember. For example: “I love muscle cars and custom motorcycles” or “Ping golf clubs are my favorites.”
Use the first or last letter of each word to create a string of characters. From the example above: “I love muscle cars and custom motorcycles,” you could come up with: “Ilmcacm” or “Iemsdms.”
Replace one or more of the characters with its numeric position in the alphabet or a special character, such as: Ilm3a3m or Ilmc@cm.
Add a suffix or prefix to make it unique to each application you will use it for.
For my Yahoo email, I could use: YeIlm3a3m. For my Chase bank account, I could use: CbIl3ma3m.
Make sure that each unique string of characters is at least eight characters long.
Smart Strategies for Using Strong Passwords Safely
Want to maximize security while making the most of strong passwords? Let’s explore best practices for safeguarding your online credentials!
Now that you have strong passwords, the last thing you need to worry about is using them wisely.
- Do not write them down on a sticky note and put them under your keyboard or behind your monitor.
- Do not store them in the file system of your computer.
- Do not use your passwords on computers that have open access to the general public, such as those found in Internet cafes, airports, or mall kiosks.
- Do not enter personal information such as your usernames and passwords on unsecured websites.
- Do make sure that the computer terminals you use your passwords on have up-to-date anti-spyware and anti-virus applications.
By following these guidelines, you can significantly enhance your business and personal information security, protecting yourself from potential threats and ensuring your data remains safe.
