For years now, I’ve preached to people about the importance of using strong passwords. My posts have included tips like: make it complex, make sure it is lengthy and change out common letters for numbers. I’ve considered these to be golden rules for creating a password, and I stick by the fact that they can help protect you from the “bad guys,” but a recent article on Gizmodo.com has me rethinking a few things.
As the author of Why That Fancy Password Isn’t Nearly as Safe as You Thought puts it, that password you created is super complicated (which is good) but “You know who else loves it? Computers!” A strong password is necessary, but are the rules we have lived by really helping us to create a VERY strong password? Also, how difficult have we made it on ourselves to remember that password. Personally, I have to hit the forgot password link on at least one website a week now, simply because I tricked myself, and I am getting really tired of it.
Today, we are surrounded by technology. Some embrace it, some detest it, but all will come in contact with it at some point. Whether it is at work, school or home, you will eventually use some form of computer and at that point, one thing is certain… You will have to create and remember a password.
A trip to the mailbox this weekend reminded me of a very important topic. Long story short, we received a letter from the police department. They were investigating a case of credit card fraud and our card number had been used. We had resolved the situation with our bank, months ago, but the shear thought of it all sent my pulse into the double digits and made me wonder if I am protected. Is there anything more I can do? How can I protect myself? What if this happens again?
