The easiest way to protect yourself, and your company, from cyber threats is by having a strong password. It’s simple – the longer and more complex your password, the more difficult it is to crack. Shorter and simpler passwords take less time and resources for hackers to compromise. 

Traits of a Bad Password 

Hackers have created databases of the most common words, phrases, and number combinations that they can run your password through to find a match. The following are some common password themes that you should avoid: 

• Birthdays; 

• Names; 

• Phone numbers; 

• Sports teams; 

• Company information; and 

• Simple obfuscation of a common word (“P@$$w0rd”).  

What Makes a Good Password? 

To start, your password should be at least 8 characters long, with at least one capital letter, one number, and one special character (“@”, or “%”, etc.). And, whenever possible, you should use multi-factor authentication, such as Google’s “Two Step Verification” to add an extra layer of security.  

Remember, the best passwords contain as much randomness as possible – using unlikely combinations and random characters is a great strategy. Be creative! 

Bad: Fuzzydog82 

Better: %FuZZyD0G#8254! 

Best: myFuzzyDog-eats4bones!Aday-BIG$ 

It’s important to remember that you should not use the same password for multiple accounts – no matter how strong it is – because if one account gets compromised, then they’re all compromised.  

Thanks again for helping to keep your network, and your people, safe from these cyber threats.