Tips on Creating a Strong Password

Upper case, lower case, numbers, symbols, the tears of your enemies…a strong password creation sometimes requires thought and patience, and even though we have been using the internet for quite a while, most people still struggle with this task.

Because passwords are so important in preventing unauthorized access to your devices and resources, we created these easy tips and tricks to help you become a password master!

Password Strength

Use a long password: Size matters when creating a password; make sure it’s always 10 characters in length. 

Try to avoid familiar words such as pet names, partners, family members, street addresses, etc. We get it, pets are lovely, and who doesn’t love their family; but these are easy to guess and find on your social profiles or by looking at public records.

Don’t recycle passwords. We know you are into the environment, but save composting and recycling for your trash. Try to use different passwords for different services/accounts so that if one of your accounts is compromised, it doesn’t lead to the immediate compromise of other unrelated services. 

Password storage and use

Don’t store or share passwords in plaintext. In simple words, don’t share your passwords via email (unless the mail is encrypted,) slack, skype, etc., or keep them in documents such as Word, Spreadsheets, etc.

Use password managers to help you keep track of your passwords. Password managers will help you either generate or store your passwords in a secure way. We recommend Pass, KeePass, 1Password, LastPass & Bitwarden.

Password creation tips

If you have trouble coming up with a good password, try creating an acronym from easy information for you to remember. For example: “I love jogging at 8:30 PM” could become IlJa8:30PM.

Diceware passphrases are an effective method of creating secure and easy-to-remember passwords. You can also use the new EFF’s diceware list as another option.

By using these tips and creating strong passwords, your personal information is less likely to land in the hands of hackers and cybercriminals.