Contact us today!
866-348-2602

Total Tech Care Blog

Total Tech Care has been serving Florida since 2001, providing IT Support such as technical helpdesk support, computer support, and consulting to small and medium-sized businesses.

Are You Practicing Good Password Hygiene?

Are You Practicing Good Password Hygiene?

Passwords are not a modern invention by any stretch, but as we have dealt with them for so long, there are a lot of bad habits that many people have adopted. That’s why we felt that it was appropriate for us to call out some of these habits and discuss some better options for you to adopt.

How Hygienic are Your Passwords?

With so many of us relying on so many passwords every day, poor password hygiene can often seem to be a foregone conclusion. Think about your own passwords, right now, and see how they compare to this list of inherently insecure patterns that many people develop:

  • Personal details, like your name or birthday
  • Names of friends, family, or most infamously, your pets
  • Commonly used words (like “password” or a favorite sports team)
  • Simple keyboard patterns (like “12345” or “qwerty”)
  • Repeated login credentials (like username: David1973, password: David1973)
  • Making their passwords as short as possible

Now, before you zip away and try to figure out new passwords for all of the accounts that have these kinds of passwords protecting them, let’s take a few more moments to figure out how to actually come up with ones that will be secure.

To begin, let’s consider some “best practices” that should no longer be described as “best.”

Some Less-than-Best Practices

According to NIST (also known as the National Institute of Standards and Technology), the following practices aren’t all that effective any longer when it comes to secure password creation.

  • Alphanumeric Switching: So, we all (should) know that something like “password” isn’t nearly secure enough to be used as a password. As a result, many users would use “p455wO2d” instead, changing letters to numerals and occasionally playing fast and loose with their capitalization. While this isn’t always a bad strategy, using such a common password still makes it far less secure than it needs to be.
  • Length Requirements: It’s likely that you have encountered this as well, as a program has kicked back your chosen password while announcing that “it is too short/long for its eight-to-ten character limit.” According to NIST, these antiquated requirements literally short-change security, as longer passwords or passphrases are more difficult to crack but easier to remember than the short jumbles of random characters.
  • Banning Cut and Paste: For some reason, many username and password fields don’t allow content to be cut and pasted into them, almost as if the prospect of typing out someone’s account details will stop a hacker in their tracks. This also makes the use of password managers, a hugely useful tool in maintaining good password practices, less available. So long as they are used properly, password managers should always be encouraged, as they enable a user to store and use multiple passwords while only really remembering one.
  • Password Hints: We’ve all been asked to set hints for our passwords before, just in case we forget them. You know the ones: “Where did you graduate from high school?” or “What was your first pet’s name?” The trouble with these questions is simple: our online habits make this kind of information easy enough to find online, especially with social media encouraging us to share pictures of our pets, or announcing that we’re attending the “Educational Institution’s Class of Whatever Year’s Something-th Reunion.” Instead of relying on these hints, combine multiple forms of authentication to both offer additional means of confirming your identity and better secure your account.
  • Frequent Password Changes: Considering how many passwords we're all supposed to remember, it only makes sense that users would fight back against frequent password updates by only changing a single detail about it and calling it changed. For instance, let’s return to David1973 for a moment. If this user were forced to change his password too often, it is likely that he would resort to simply adding an easy-to-remember (and guess) detail. Maybe this is the fifth time that David1973 has been told to change his password, so while his password started as “David1973,” it progressed to “2David1973” to “3David1973” and so on to “5David1973.” Of course, we aren’t arguing that passwords should never be changed, but make sure that these changes aren’t actually counterproductive.

How to Create a Secure Password

Rather than using a password, per se, we recommend that you instead use a passphrase. Let’s use a quote by author Elbert Hubbard as our example: “Positive anything is better than negative nothing.” 

Of course, this is a mouthful to type, in a manner of speaking, so it might make sense to use some alphanumeric switching to help abbreviate it into a complex phrase that is still easy to remember.

Doing so, “positiveanythingisbetterthannegativenothing” becomes “p0$!tiV3NE+hg>-tiV3_+hg”.

Then, if you use this password as the master access code for a password manager, the rest of your passwords/passphrases could foreseeably be randomly generated, increasing your overall security even further. To make your password manager even more secure, you should really devise your own complex phrase, rather than steal one from an author.

You never know, some enterprising cybercriminal might be a big fan of Hubbard’s works, too.

For more advice and assistance to help you make your passwords and accounts as secure as possible, reach out to Total Tech Care by calling 866-348-2602 today!

 

Comments

No comments made yet. Be the first to submit a comment
Already Registered? Login Here
Guest
Friday, 29 March 2024
If you'd like to register, please fill in the username, password and name fields.

Blog Archive

Sign Up for Our Newsletter

  • First Name *
  • Last Name *

      Free Consultation

      Sign up today for a
      FREE Network Consultation

      How secure is your IT infrastructure?
      Let us evaluate it for free!

      Sign up Now!

      Free Consultation
       

      Tag Cloud

      Security Tip of the Week Technology Best Practices Business Computing Cloud Privacy Hackers Productivity Hosted Solutions Efficiency Software Network Security Business Google Microsoft Internet Email Malware Backup Workplace Tips Innovation User Tips Data Computer Mobile Devices Hardware IT Services Android VoIP Disaster Recovery communications IT Support Business Continuity Smartphones Communication Smartphone Miscellaneous Mobile Device Small Business Network Browser Productivity Collaboration Cybersecurity Quick Tips Users Business Management Windows Managed IT Services Upgrade Phishing Ransomware Data Backup Outsourced IT Windows 10 Data Recovery Office Server Save Money Cloud Computing Windows 10 Passwords Saving Money Holiday Gadgets Tech Term Chrome Social Media Virtualization Managed IT Services Managed Service Automation Microsoft Office Computers Artificial Intelligence Operating System Facebook Cybercrime BYOD Internet of Things Mobile Device Management Networking IT Support Wi-Fi Hacking Health Covid-19 Information Spam Office 365 Alert Telephone Systems Managed Service Provider Information Technology Remote Router BDR Bandwidth Social Engineering Mobility Recovery Employer-Employee Relationship Mobile Computing Law Enforcement Application Data Breach Remote Monitoring App History Password Big Data Money Encryption Applications Human Resources Blockchain Paperless Office Remote Computing Government Mobile Office Private Cloud Managed IT Office Tips Training Apps How To VPN Data Storage Patch Management WiFi Two-factor Authentication Vulnerability IT solutions Windows 7 Entertainment Word Website Avoiding Downtime Budget Mouse HaaS Servers Infrastructure Voice over Internet Protocol Data Security Bring Your Own Device Data Management Work/Life Balance Wireless Gmail Settings Flexibility Google Drive Marketing Vendor Keyboard Virtual Reality Managed Services Apple Scam Telephone System Staff Software as a Service Display Machine Learning Social USB Remote Work Connectivity User Error Vendor Management Employee/Employer Relationship Meetings RMM Save Time Risk Management Hacker Cleaning The Internet of Things Data Protection Lithium-ion battery End of Support Physical Security Education Safety Firewall HIPAA Sports Conferencing Redundancy Virtual Assistant SaaS Database Business Intelligence Proactive IT Authentication Printer Worker Best Practice Remote Workers Bluetooth Audit IT Management YouTube Network Congestion eWaste Processor Black Market Botnet Update IT Plan Hard Drive IT Consultant Google Docs Document Management Identity Theft Unsupported Software Solid State Drive Wireless Technology Wearable Technology How to Downtime Charger Computing Retail Humor Hard Drives Instant Messaging Compliance Robot Excel Data storage OneNote Computer Care Augmented Reality Automobile Fraud Biometrics Current Events Virtual Desktop Telephony Computing Infrastructure Samsung Remote Worker Digital Signage Going Green Cryptocurrency DDoS Value SharePoint Electronic Medical Records Procurement Battery Spam Blocking Shadow IT Workplace Strategy Comparison Net Neutrality Legal Virus Hiring/Firing CES Customer Service Help Desk Environment Unified Threat Management Internet Exlporer Printing Computer Accessories Business Technology Content Management Fax Server PDF Access Control Managed Services Provider Relocation Monitoring Batteries Tools Tablet Workforce Television Virtual Private Network Windows 8.1 Digitize Domains Cables Windows Server 2008 R2 Video Games Customer relationships IaaS Maintenance Worker Commute Telecommuting Manufacturing Experience Bloatware Public Computer Project Management Email Best Practices Nanotechnology IT Assessment Cortana Regulations Scalability Printer Server Transportation Rootkit Computer Tips Digital Signature Managed IT Service Security Cameras Business Owner Tablets Computer Fan Biometric Security Entrepreneur NarrowBand Warranty Virtual CIO OneDrive HVAC Peripheral Google Apps Search Workers Benefits iPhone Digital Security Cameras Analysis Using Data Shortcut FENG 5G Cost Management IBM Administrator Devices Copiers Enterprise Content Management Quick Tip Social Networking Flash Smart Technology Files MSP Ergonomics Accountants Smartwatch Credit Cards OLED Software Tips Supercomputer Chromecast Microchip Thought Leadership Development Password Management PCI DSS Running Cable Password Manager Virtual Machine Sync Emails Memory Colocation Uninterrupted Power Supply 2FA Fiber Optics Multi-Factor Security Employee Cabling Consultant Search Engine Twitter Messaging Two Factor Authentication NIST Policy Business Mangement Hypervisor Analytics Netflix Monitor Root Cause Analysis Dark mode Smart Tech Trend Micro Trending Amazon Default App Best Available HBO Knowledge Music Addiction SMS Streaming Media Procedure Recycling Saving Time WIndows 7 Skype Science Reputation Data loss Tech Support Wiring dark theme Practices Shopping Google Search Content Amazon Web Services IT Infrastructure Outlook Techology Leadership Laptop Troubleshooting Cache AI Safe Mode FinTech Distributed Denial of Service Criminal Customer Relationship Management Start Menu Bing Customers Audiobook Analyitcs Screen Mirroring Loyalty GDPR Hosted Computing Social Network Wireless Internet Online Shopping Investment Programming Frequently Asked Questions Touchpad Books Windows Media Player File Sharing Employees Employee/Employer Relationships User Mobile PowerPoint Windows 10s Specifications ISP Politics Cast Advertising Camera Windows 365 Inventory Wire Video Conferencing Antivirus Evernote ROI Tip of the week webinar Emergency Employer Employee Relationship Notifications Sales Bitcoin Managing Stress Professional Services Travel Shortcuts Windows 8 Public Cloud Millennials Cryptomining Assessment Printers Point of Sale Personal IT service Smart Office Supply Chain Management Wireless Charging Windows Server 2008 Cameras

      Top Blog

      The reasoning for this is simple: you want to make sure that operations are proceeding as intended, even if you’re not there. If you completely check out from the workplace every time you leave, you could return from your vacation to a complete and total disaster that may have been prevented with y...
      QR-Code