Chances are, you use passwords every day.To open your computer, log on your favorite websites, to get work done. Theeasy route is to have a simple password that works everywhere. Unfortunately,this can be a problem. Criminals are very good at guessing passwords. Some havecomputer programs that can make millions of guesses until something works. Andif they already know information about you, it is even easier. Your job is tocreate a password that is very hard to guess. Here’s how. 

 

Your first thought may be to use a pet'sname, a birth date, an address or part of a phone number. These things are tooeasy for criminals to discover. So don't use them. Your password should notinclude information about you. 

 

Thankfully, there are ways to havememorable but hard-to-guess passwords. Consider this: in addition to single words,phrases can also be easy to remember. Maybe it’s a favorite song lyric orquote. An example is "Jack and Jill went up the hill". That's easy toremember, right? Well, your password is there. It’s the first letter of eachword. In this example, this will be your password. That's not something that iseasily guessed. Here is why. 

 

 

First, it’s not in the dictionary. Thismakes guessing it harder. There are about 60,000 words in English. A computercan test out those words pretty quickly, so don't use them. But there's more.This password could still be stronger by adding upper-case letters, numbers orspecial characters. So now this is a very strong password, but there is still arisk. If you write it down, be careful where you keep it .Be aware that somebodycan look over your shoulder or find it in your trash. Giving it to loved-onesis also risky. They may not be as cautious as you are. Only you should knowyour password. 

 

 

Criminals may also try to fool you intohanding it over via phone calls. Never tell anyone your password over thephone. And be careful when you get an email that asks for a password. It couldbe a scam. To help avoid problems, don't use the same password everywhere, that'slike having one key that unlocks everything you own. The stakes are high if youlose it. Also, be careful if you use a computer that is not yours. Let's sayyou check email using a computer in a store, library or computer lab. You login, check email and walk away. The next person to use that computer now hasaccess to your email account and all the information in it. Always remember tolog out of each site you visit on a computer that isn't yours. 

 

 

Passwords are an essential part of lifeonline, and if we’re not careful about keeping them secret, they can cause bigproblems. By understanding the risks, and making passwords stronger, we canfeel a little more secure.