You most likely have an email account right ? Well, what keeps that email account secure? That’s right, you need to secure it with a password. In a modern world where the internet connects everything that we do, it’s crucial to have passwords that can keep our accounts secure at all times. Unfortunately, cybercriminals are always after our personal information and login credentials, which doesn’t bode well for our passwords! The reality is that most passwords are weak, and can be cracked within minutes!
Weaker passwords are easier to remember, which is why people use them. However, they put your accounts at serious risk, especially if you’re using the same password for multiple accounts. The sad reality is that most people believe that they would never fall victim to a serious cyberattack that would allow cybercriminals to steal their login credentials, but you are far more at risk than you might expect.
You need to use strong and unique passwords if you want to ensure that all of your accounts remain secure. That is why password managers are essential in the modern society that we live in today. Not sure how to create strong passwords or how a password manager would help you? Keep reading to find out and keep your accounts safe at all times.
Strengthening your Passwords
When you’re asked to create a password for your login credentials there are always some requirements that need to be fulfilled. Whether you need to use a number, a capital letter, or a symbol, you have likely used something easy to remember. Oftentimes this means using something that relates to your personal life such as your date of birth, the name of a pet, or even just your full name.
This information is always easy to remember, which means that you can sign into your account no matter where you are - even if you’re signing in from a new device. However, the problem is that this information is easy to discover, whether that’s on social media or through a ton of digging. Cybercriminals always find ways to discover some crucial information about you. If you use any of this information in your login credentials, your accounts won't stay secure for long!
So, what does it mean to create a strong password? It’s much more than just meeting the requirements that the website asks for when you create your account. There’s a lot more that goes into creating passwords than just that!
Studies have shown that the strongest passwords are made up of a collection of completely random letters, symbols, and numbers. None of these characters should relate to you in any way, shape, or form. You can also use random words if you don’t want to use a collection of letters, but make sure to include numbers and symbols too. The longer the password is, the stronger it will be.
The Importance of Creating Unique Passwords
Aside from creating weak passwords, the biggest mistake that internet users make all the time is using the same password for multiple accounts. Whether it’s your bank account, email, Netflix, or even that random giveaway you’re entering on Instagram, using the same password over and over again is a mistake.
The internet is filled with phishing scams that are designed to steal your login credentials. Hackers use phishing emails, websites, and even fake web pages that replicate famous sites like Facebook to trick unsuspecting users into giving up their login credentials.
Just like creating weak passwords, using the same password for multiple accounts makes it much easier to remember. If all of your accounts’ passwords are the same, then surely you can’t get it wrong when you need to type your password in, right?
While that might be true, it also makes it easier for cybercriminals to break into multiple accounts at the same time. If a hacker manages to break into one of your accounts, the first thing they will try is to use the same login credentials for other accounts - your bank account is usually the first one they go after!
As soon as they get into your account they will change the password to lock you out. Before you know it, you’ve lost access to all of your accounts within minutes. You never know where you might be when a cybercriminal strikes - you could be sleeping, travelling, or simply not paying attention to your phone at the time. So, overall, it’s not worth the risk of having weak passwords for your accounts!
Remembering All of Your Passwords
The main reason why people don’t use strong and secure passwords is that they are difficult to remember. If you’re using strong and unique passwords properly, it will be impossible to remember them all! Of course, this is a problem because there may be a situation where you need to log into your accounts again - whether you got a new phone, lost your phone, or you’re borrowing someone else’s device. In this scenario, it would be impossible to remember any of your passwords, which is a disaster.
That’s why you need a premium password manager, which acts as a secure vault that stores all of your passwords. Premium password managers are far more secure than the default one of your iPhone or laptop, and here’s why. Password managers can only be opened using a master key. The master key is randomly generated, and you are the only person in the world that has access to the master key.
As long as you remember the login credentials for your password manager, and you keep the master key safely stored away, you can access your secure password vault from anywhere, at any time. This system also prevents anyone else from accessing the password manager, which is why your login credentials will always be safe!
Now you can create strong and unique passwords that will keep cybercriminals out of your accounts, without having to worry about forgetting the passwords and having to go through the tedious process of resetting them whenever you need to log back into your account.