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How to choose a good password?

16
Aug

We use passwords everywhere: emails, bank accounts, social networks, streaming services, e-commerce and more. According to a Deloitte study, 90% of passwords are vulnerable. To protect more your personal information on the Internet, our team offers you some tips and tricks to improve the security of your passwords.

Passwords to avoid

  • Avoid choosing associations with your personal information such as birth dates, the names of your children, addresses or even a pet. These choices are very vulnerable because they can be found easily online.
  • Do not take frequently used letter or number sequences such as 123456. Common names such as “Star Wars” or words from the dictionary such as “hockey” are obviously to be avoided.

According to Deloitte, about 80% of Internet users choose the 500 most popular passwords. Here is a short list of the most used passwords according to Splashdata:

  1. 123456                6.123456789
  2. password            7.letmein
  3. 12345678            8.1234567
  4. qwerty                 9.football
  5. 12345                 10. iloveyou

A mix of numbers, letters and symbols

  • Always favor passwords with numbers and letters.
  • Then add question marks, exclamation points, and symbols such as @, $ to enhance security. Example: @ Y2j3z $ <2bE {
  • A good password must contain at least 8 to 15 characters.

A password for each account

Never use the same password for different sites.If one of your accounts gets hacked, all other accounts with the same password are now also vulnerable. 

The two-factor authentication

When the website offers it, accept the two-factor authentication option to ensure your identity. A code is frequently sent to your cell phone when someone else tries to connect to your account.

“Passphrases”, a good idea

This method is very safe and helps to memorize the password. Here’s how to proceed:

  • Invent a phrase randomly. Avoid choosing a famous quote or song lyrics. Example: Sophia plays guitar in her free time.
  • Then take the first letter of each word. Example: spgihft
  • Add numbers, symbols, and capital letters later to enhance password security. For example: $spgihft147!?

Password managers

There are many tools to store  your passwords. Using one can help you to manage all of them. Best of all, you have only one password to remember.

Here are some of the most popular password managers:

Do not forget to change your password a few times a year and never write them down somewhere.

The protection of our privacy, so important, also depends on our password choices. Our team hopes this article will help you secure a bit more your own. Last tip, here are some websites to test the strength of your passwords: