The Importance of Strong Passwords

Passwords are the keys to your digital castle. Just like your housekeys, you want to do everything you can to keep your passwords safe.  

Passwords can be made ironclad with additional authentication methods, such as multifactor authentication (MFA).

Creating, storing and remembering passwords can be a pain for all of us online, but the truth is that passwords are your first line of defense against cybercriminals and data breaches. Also, it has never been easier to maintain your passwords with free, simple-to-use password managers. With a few moments of forethought today, you can stay safe online for years to come.

Long, Unique, Complex 

No matter what accounts they protect, all passwords should be created with these three guiding principles in mind:

• Long – Every one of your passwords should be at least 12 characters long.

• Unique – Each account needs to be protected with its own unique password. Never reuse passwords. This way, if one of your accounts is compromised, your other accounts remain secured. We’re talking really unique, not just changing one character or adding a “2” at the end – to really trick up hackers, none of your passwords should look alike.

• Complex – Each unique password should be a combination of upper case letters, lower case letters, numbers and special characters (like >,!?).    

How Often Do I Change My Password?

If your password is long, unique and complex, you don’t need to ever change it unless you become aware that an unauthorized person is accessing that account, or the password was compromised in a data breach.

This recommendation is backed up by the latest guidance from the National Institute of Standards and Technology. For many years, cybersecurity experts told us to change our passwords every few months. However, this constant change isn’t helpful if your passwords are each long, unique and complex. In fact, if you change your passwords often, you risk reusing old passwords or falling into bad habits of creating similar or weak passwords.

Don’t Pass on Password Managers 

We’ve all probably used one password to secure multiple, maybe even all, of our digital accounts. But that’s not safe, and it becomes even more unsafe as time goes on. If your one password gets stolen because of a breach, it becomes a skeleton key for your whole cyber life. This compromised password can be used it to gain access to all your accounts and your sensitive information.  

Here’s where password managers really shine. Password managers are pieces of software that often take the form of apps, browser plugins or they might be included automatically in your browser or computer operating system. With a few clicks, you can generate new, secure passwords that are long, unique and complex. These passwords managers automatically store your passwords and can autofill them when you arrive at the site.  

Password managers literally take a few minutes to download and get started with.  

You can fill in all your passwords at once, or just add a few passwords for your key accounts (email, banking and social media, for example) and add more over time. Many times, when you log into a site, your password manager will ask if you want to store the password – click yes, and, boom, another account is secured. And to keep your password manager extra safe, secure it with multi-factor authentication (MFA).