TECHNOLOGY TIPS - HOW TO CHOOSE THE BEST PASSWORDS
When it comes to Internet security, you really need to be careful of what you use as a password not to mention number sequences.
Last week I had this conversation with a friend of mine because I can admit that I am very particular of the passwords I use. Suffice to say we live in an electronic age where online transactions have become much more prevalent. With any increased use of online transactions, the challenge is to create passwords that are immune to cyber thieves who have developed techniques to crack the passwords.
So how do you choose the best password that is strong enough to withstand any attempts to access the account? Here are some tips that should help:
1. Don't use a password that is in the dictionary, even the foreign ones. There are password cracking software to determine the exact word in seconds.
2. Don't use passwords that are associated to you like your maiden name, place of birth, Social Security number, children's names, phone numbers. Mixing upper and lower case letters with numbers and other symbols allowed by the system would take too long to guess and most hackers go for the easy targets. Just remember that if you have some really unique password, make sure you can remember it. Keep any password record offline.
3. Don't duplicate your password so you should have unique passwords for all accounts.
4. Don't use commonly used passwords like " 12345678"
5. Use a password generating and auto-filling software. One that I really prefer is 1Password which is currently available in Beta for Windows Users.
Your password is your secret key to a secured internet/computer account. Make sure you keep it that way.
CATHY MALLERS & DEAN'S TEAM CHICAGO
