Recently, weve heard of Presidential candidates getting their emails hacked. And no matter what your party affiliation is, this should make us all think. If it can happen to them, it can happen to us. If you dont have effective passwords or security questions, you are at risk. Businesses are even more at risk due to personnel turnover and the social hacking techniques being used today.
Basically, there are two ways to get your password hacked. The most common way is to guess. If I know enough about you and where you were born and when you met your husband etc., I have a better chance at guessing a password you may have used, such as a childs name or birthday, your street address or phone number, or even a pets name. (If you use any of these, it is time to change now.) Using common names and items can be costly, if your password is discovered.
Social hacking or social engineering is the next way and most commonly used in businesses. I call a person in your office and get into a conversation about the weather. I drop a few interesting facts about the boss and soon explain that he needs the password. Because she assumes I am familiar with the boss, she gives it to me. Next thing you know, I am in your network and stealing information.
Here are some tips to picking a great password. Everyone needs a strong pass phrase. The most basic level of good security is a good password. But the various hacking tools and robots make cracking basic passwords too easy. You should create pass phrases (more than one word) that are strong. A strong pass phrase contains at least three of the following: uppercase letters (e.g., A, B, C); lowercase letters (e.g., d, e, f); numbers (e.g., 1, 2, 3); one or more spaces (thats what makes it a phrase); and/or special characters (which can include: { } [ ] , . < > ; : ‘ ” ? / | ` ~ ! @ # $ % ^ & * ( ) _ – + = ).
Its the space that makes remembering your strong pass phrase easier. For example: This is a Pass phrase L0ggin on now (note the use of a zero in loggin). Other examples are: Dont run with scissors 8< ; Kick b*tt, take names!; or Smiling 2004 ;-). Your pass phrase should be at least 6 characters. It should not contain any part of your name, your username, or your email address. It should change 8-12 times per year. And it must not be any single word that can be found in any dictionary (of any language). Hint: Misspelled words are most effective. The first thing robots do to crack passwords is to run a dictionary check against your username. If your pass phrase is a single word, you lose.* (*Adam Orenczeck , Osite Computer Specialists, Orlando, FL).
Follow these rules and you will have a strong password that can stand up to scrutiny and keep your data safe.
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