Unauthorized access to any computing device such as tablets and smartphones may cause a major problem to the users. This may cause hacking or cyber-attack, which may result in loss of information and data that is very sensitive and valuable to the users. Data at risk may include emails, financial statements, and music, among others. Many people get some of their cash, account, and even identity stolen. Lack of proper passwords may make unauthorized users use the stolen information or data illegally and thus cause trouble with the law.
A password gives you the authority to access particular information or data. If one device has several users, each user is supposed to have a unique password that will enable each user to have access to the device. Your passwords allow access into your personal information. So what are the most excellent practices to generate secure passwords to make your accounts safe against cyberattacks?
How does a password get hacked?
Hackers usually download a dictionary attack tool first and attempt to login a lot of times with a list of passwords. After a successful attack, they often circulate passwords on other popular websites. The hacker then fills the dictionary attack tool with the list of passwords.
Truly secure passwords need to have several different features. These include:
Special characters
Use at least 12 characters that have upper and lower case letters, symbols and numbers. Mix up the numbers and symbols with letters randomly. Also, make sure to use variations on capitalization, spelling, punctuation and numbers. The alphabet or letters should not follow each other thus making it stronger.
Secure passwords by using long passwords
Several websites give the minimum number of characters that one must use for the password. The longer it is, the better as the hacker may not be able to crack it. However, having a passphrase is recommended over using a single password. Long and complicated passwords need additional time and effort for the hacker to guess.
Unique for every account
Passwords must be unique and nothing less but unique. There are several ways that you can create your password. Each account or website should have its unique password. When hackers are done with large-scale hacks, the lists of the email addresses along with passwords are usually leaked online. If you fall victim, and you use the same password on many sites, your information might be used easily to gain access to any of your other accounts. Always use unique passwords for every account because at any given time, cyber attackers can know the base of your password and they can easily hack your device from all other sites.
Don’t use personal information in passwords
Your password should be impossible to guess; for instance, you should not use your kid’s name, pet names, date of birth, or place of birth, it should not be a real name of a place or a thing or a person. Secure passwords should have random characters. Someone who knows you or can access your personal information online, might guess the information used in your passwords.
Other features that help to make your password more secure include:
Using multi-factor authentication
Several techniques have identification options in case anybody logs in on your devices without your permission, especially from unrecognized devices. This process typically sends texts or alerts the user on their secondary device with a code needed to verify your identity. In such a case, you ought to use the received code to log in from a recognized device such as the tablet, phone, or computer.
Using a password manager
For those with a memory that cannot keep a long list of complicated passwords, the answer is getting a password manager. It helps to take care of your passwords, and in the majority of the cases, it will also create strong and secure passwords and, after that, ensure that they are linked with the rig necessary websites. There are quite a lot of password managers to choose from, although they all work more or less in a similar way, like creating an encrypted vault which stores each of your passwords, generating passwords, and in most cases, will autofill in passwords on the websites for you.
