Creating Strong & Secure Passwords

It is common to hear how important it is to know how to prevent identity theft by securing your information while online or on a computer. One of the simplest ways that you can protect yourself is through a strong password. While the implementation of a strong password is often talked about, the importance of one indeed cannot be overstated. We use passwords for a variety of reasons such as logging into email accounts, social networking sites, online games, credit card accounts, bank accounts, online forums, and several other accounts. Because there are so many accounts, many people often use the same two or three passwords for all of their accounts, or they use passwords that are not very strong. These include nicknames, names, dates of birth, maiden names or other predictable and obvious information.

The problem with using the same or a couple of passwords for all of your accounts is the fact that all of your different accounts most likely have different security strengths. For example, a system that you have an account with that does not store much personal information or any credit card information, such as an online game will not have a robust security system since even if it were hacked, no vital information would be stolen. On the other hand, a bank or credit card company will have a robust security system since valuable data is stored on your account. Now, if you use the same password for both the online game and your credit card account, a hacker can easily crack your password and username from the online game and try to use it on many different websites. Since the information you have applied for the online game is the same for your credit card account, they will be able to hack into your account even though there is a sound security system in place. This is why you should never use the same password for various accounts. To be safe, you should also create new passwords at least once a month. Passwords should be at least six characters long and contain a mix of lowercase and uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols. This will help ensure that your personal information remains safe.