Is My Password Secure?
Studies show that approximately 40% of all password are easily guessed. Many users never
change the default password applicable to many routers and other devices. One can easily
find lists of default passwords on the Internet.
Many times a password my be compromised if a key piece of personal information is discovered.
Unscrupulous individuals may use social engineering techniques, such as posing as an authorized
person to obtain information commonly used as passwords: birthdays, license plate numbers, etc.
Any password found on a list is at risk. The most common example is a dictionary. Hackers will
literally try each and every word (and variation, such as a backward spelling) to break a password.
This is known as a "Brute Force" attack.
Short passwords (less than seven characters) are especially vulnerable. Many PC's are powerful
enough to try all alphanumeric combinations in rapid succession.
Weak passwords tend to be less than 10 characters or may be the default. They can be easily
broken by several techniques. For example, as mentioned above, hackers will usually try every
word in a list/dictionary. Another mistake to avoid is to use a variation of the user name. If
the user name is "tigers" do not use any variation for the password such as "tigers77". Conversely,
strong passwords are long (10+) characters, comprised of upper and lower case letters, with the
inclusion on numerals and special characters. These types of passwords cannot be guessed because
they are not words or names- they do not exist. Remember- there is a direct correlation between
how difficult and time consuming the password proves to crack and the resulting security.
Remember- you can use
CyberScrub KeyChain Password Manager
to manage your passwords. KeyChain Password Manager will remember your log in details for each
website and automatically fill in the user name and password log in fields. |
Password Policy
