A Strong Password
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- Is 10 or more characters long, consisting of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and symbols.
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- Does not contain your name, birthdate, house number or other easily identifiable information.
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- Is significantly different from previous passwords. Don’t reuse your old passwords. Do use a different password for every website, especially sensitive sites that store your personal information.
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- Contains characters from each of the following four groups:
| Group | Examples |
| Uppercase letters | A, B, C … |
| Lowercase letters | a, b, c … |
| Numerals | 0, 1,2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 |
| Symbols found on the keyboard | ` ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ + – = { } | \ : ” ; ‘ < > ? , . / |
Keys to password strength: length and complexity
An ideal password is long and has letters, punctuation, symbols, and numbers.
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- Whenever possible, use 14 characters or more.
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- The more variety of characters in your password, the better.
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- Use the entire keyboard, not just the letters and characters you are most familiar with.
Create a strong password you can remember
| Instructions | Example |
| Make up a sentence or two. | Strong passwords are better and easier to remember. |
| Remove the spaces between the words in the sentence. | Strongpasswordsarebetterandeasiertoremember. |
| Turn words into symbols, numbers, or shorthand. | StrongpasswordsRbetter&easier2remember. |
| Add numbers. Put numbers that are meaningful to you, but not to anyone else, after the sentence. | StrongpasswordsRbetter&easier2remember1983. |
Here is another example of how to shorten passwords:
“Jamicia Is Gonna Be Totally Stupid” and then cut it down to “JamaicaIGBTS”
Next, lets misspell Jamicia by changing it to “JammaiccaIGBTS”
Finally, add symbols that represent letters… “J@mm@!cc@|G8T$“
Protect your passwords from prying eyes
The easiest way to “remember” passwords is to write them down. It is okay to write passwords down, but keep them secure and safely stored. One of the easiest and most secure ways of doing this is by using a password safe. These are pretty neat devices, that do not connect to the internet. You enter a main password for the safe, and then your passwords are organized and displayed.
Password Manager Programs
There are also many programs out there that will store and even generate secure passwords for you. I prefer using thee methods outlined to create your own, however some folks do prefer the simplicity of the programs. When looking at a password manager program, consider one that offers encrypted storage of your passwords, such as keeper.
Limited Time Get 50% off (keepersecurity.com)
Take a look at this article for a deeper dive into some of the best password managers of 2022.
Best Password Managers Reddit Users Recommend in 2022| Cybernews
Common password mistakes to avoid
Hackers use sophisticated tools that can rapidly break passwords.
Avoid creating passwords that use:
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- Words from the dictionary.
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- Words spelled backwards, common misspellings, slang and abbreviations.
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- Numbers in sequence or repeated characters. Examples: 12345678, 222222, abcdefg, or letters that are next to each other on your keyboard (asdfg).
- Anything containing your personal, spouses or relatives’ information. This includes things like your birth day, house number, anniversary etc.
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