Ask Chris
How can I make my password as safe as possible?
Passwords should be easy for you to remember but difficult for others to guess.
Family names, pet names, your nickname, simple numbers and especially the word ‘password’ are super-simple to guess so you should avoid these – they really are a security risk.
The best thing to do is use a mix of upper and lower case letters, numbers and symbols (like #, * and !).
A combination of two or three words with capital letters placed at unusual spots throughout is easy for you to remember and renders a password much more secure.
Don’t forget: never write your password down and never share it with anyone – especially over email!
Posted by Marika Mazzucchelli
July 3rd, 2009 at 4:52 am
I’ve found that using bits of history like location and date meet those requirements. e.g.BitburgAB1950. I was not stationed there but at other locations at the time. To delve into my history would take quite a bit of guessing. However beware of place of birth and date.
July 3rd, 2009 at 6:52 am
Oh, yes, Marika this is obviously written by someone who has not reached middle age. LOL!! Hey wait till you get there and see how you go remembering dozens of passwords in your head
. As to never writing them down….forget it…you just have to do it..no matter what anyone says and I do not believe that people do not do this.
What I do is write them down in a cryptic code that only I understand.
July 3rd, 2009 at 1:43 pm
Excellent idea, Bill!
July 3rd, 2009 at 2:02 pm
Hi Pam,
Would you believe I have a terrible time remembering my passwords and PIN’s? It’s embarrassing, frankly. I do try and console myself with the idea I work for an ISP and therefore have an extraordinary number of passwords running through my brain cells…but I don’t think that cuts it in the end
Please don’t tell me your cryptic code is pig-latin! My husband has started using it of a morning when he’s taking the dog to the ‘ark-pay’ (because the dog knows park and gets super-excited!) I realise now how easy it is to understand and wonder why on earth we thought is was so cryptic when we were kids.
- Marika