See him discussing how to protect yourself from identity theft on your password longer and more complex increases the number of attempts an attacker would need to successfully crack it - with sufficient complexity you can make your password essentially uncrackable. Robert Siciliano is a McAfee Consultant and Identity Theft Expert. If the site you are signing up for offers a password strength analyzer, pay attention to it and heed its advice. For example, in the example above, your “tip sheet” might read “To be, or not to be?” You can also write a “tip sheet” which will give you a clue to remember your password, but doesn’t actually contain your password on it.It’s okay to write down your passwords, just keep them away from your computer and mixed in with other numbers and letters so it’s not apparent that it’s a password.2B-or-Not_2b? -This one says “To be or not to be?” Have fun with known short codes or sentences or phrases.To change these periodically, you can slide them across the keyboard. The letter V starting with any of the top keys. Use the keyboard as a palette to create shapes.Iam:)2b29! - This has 10 characters and says “I am happy to be 29!” I wish. Strong passwords are easy to remember but hard to guess.Do use at least eight characters of lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols in your password.Depending on the sensitivity of the information being protected, you should change your passwords periodically, and avoid reusing a password for at least one year.Keep your passwords safe by keeping them to yourself. Your trusted friend now might not be your friend in the future. Avoid entering passwords when using unsecured Wi-Fi connections (like at the airport or coffee shop)-hackers can intercept your passwords and data over this unsecured connection.Avoid entering passwords on computers you don’t control (like computers at an Internet café or library)-they may have malware that steals your passwords.Use comprehensive security software and keep it up to date to avoid keyloggers (keystroke loggers) and other malware.Always log off if you leave your device and anyone is around-it only takes a moment for someone to steal or change the password.Be sure no one watches when you enter your password.Make sure you use different passwords for each of your accounts.An alternative to traditional hacking, it is the act of manipulating others into performing certain actions or divulging confidential information. Social engineering: Social engineering is an elaborate type of lying. Two recent breaches revealed a password reuse rate of 31% among victims. Reuse of passwords across multiple sites: Reusing passwords for email, banking, and social media accounts can lead to identity theft. When 32 million passwords were exposed in a breach last year, almost 1% of victims were using “123456.” The next most popular password was “12345.” Other common choices are “111111,” “princess,” “qwerty,” and “abc123.” Simple passwords: Don’t use personal information such as your name, age, birth date, child’s name, pet’s name, or favorite color/song, etc. This is how Sarah Palin’s Yahoo account was hacked. The answers can often be found on your social media profile. When you click the “forgot password” link within a webmail service or other site, you’re asked to answer a question or series of questions. Password cracking becomes almost effortless with a tool like John the Ripper or similar programs.Ĭracking security questions: Many people use first names as passwords, usually the names of spouses, kids, other relatives, or pets, all of which can be deduced with a little research. These cracks rely on software that automatically plugs common words into password fields. Don’t use dictionary words, slang terms, common misspellings, or words spelled backward. How to get hackedĭictionary attacks: Avoid consecutive keyboard combinations- such as qwerty or asdfg. Most people don’t realize there are a number of common techniques used to crack passwords and plenty more ways we make our accounts vulnerable due to simple and widely used passwords. Protect your information by creating a secure password that makes sense to you, but not to others.
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