In the News
Time and time again, data shows the weaknesses in human password creation. In Why So Many People Make Their Password ‘Dragon’, Louise Matsakis discusses common passwords and the reasoning behind such passwords’ creation. Matsakis explains that individuals tend to create account passwords that express something the user likes, whether that be a word or a phrase such as ‘dragon’ or ‘iloveyou’. Matsakis illustrates the security vulnerability of creating such simple and overused passwords.
Our Take
Passwords are a vital way to protect the personal information that individuals give out on various accounts. Social media accounts, gaming accounts, and financial accounts contain highly sensitive information that require maximum protection. Creating a simple password forged out of one word or a common phrase is risky on a number of fronts:
- These passwords are often easy to crack with hacking utilities because they appear in dictionaries or make common number/letter/symbol substitutions with words that appear in dictionaries
- People frequently post publicly about their hobbies and loved ones, making these passwords guessable to anyone who can view their social media account
Recommendations
So how can you protect your password and account information?
- Refrain from choosing passwords that contain a simple word or phrase–create strong passwords and change them every so often
- Make sure to change an account’s default password to a unique password
- User password databases such as LastPass or KeePass to keep track of accounts, rather than reusing the same passwords across accounts
Do not make your passwords or security questions/answers out of information that can be found on your social media