By: Paul A. Marks
Associate Attorney
Sivia Business & Legal Services
Picking the perfect password is tricky business. Hacking both corporate and personal accounts is increasingly more common, so it is critical to protect your email and financial information with well-constructed passwords. But striking the perfect balance between passwords you will remember, and passwords no one else will guess, is no easy task.
The first step is to immediately stop using obvious choices such as “password,” “123456,” your birthday or your anniversary; even using your first name and birth year is easily cracked by cyberthiefs. I have also noticed many online accounts are requiring passwords to include letters, numbers, one capital and a symbol. While this strategy does make it more difficult, how can you remember these random collections?
The best way to create difficult passwords that you will actually remember. The first suggestion is to create a “word” out of your passwords. For example, “H@$hT@g1” is “HashTag1.” Adding commas before and after the password also strengthens your password—“,,,H@$hT@g1,,,”
Finally, type up a list of all of your passwords and keep a copy in a safe or safe deposit box. If you have a secure cloud access, you should save a copy there, too. But be sure to name the document something inconspicuous such as “Recipes” or “To-Do List.”
A good password is critical to protecting your client database, as well as personal information. For more simple ways to protect your business, and yourself, from potential litigation issues, contact me at 618-659-4499. You can visit us online at www.sivialaw.com.
"Quotations" by Marks 