The arrival of the internet has brought many features that simplify our daily lives.
Since the 2000s, we have frequently used a crucial element that accompanies us on the internet: the password .
The very purpose of the password
The password is also what allows us to identify ourselves on the internet in order to access something secret or protected. This can be to access an account on a website, a computer or even software.
Why is it important to create a good password?
It’s not so bad in situations where this password does not protect something of great importance. However, this practice should be avoided when the purpose of the password is to protect something important or valuable.
Indeed, on spaces such as those of the bank, administrative sites of the State for example, it is necessary to use unique and strong passwords. You also have to be very careful not to store these passwords in plain text in vulnerable places.
Also Read: Why Is Password Security So Important?
How to create a good password?
The correct password is defined by several usage rules, here they are:
A long password
Prefer the use of a long password, it is in particular this criterion which will protect against so-called brute force attacks, we recommend at least 16 characters .
A complex password
Avoid surnames, first names or even the name of your dog and any other personal information from your private life.
One-time password
In other words, a password that is not reused on other sites. If your password is compromised on one site, other accounts on other sites will still be protected .
Varied characters
Indeed, the more characters used, the stronger the password . Feel free to randomly mix numbers, letters and special characters. You can also use characters from other languages such as those from the Cyrillic alphabet.
A good memory
The password should be stored in your memory and not on a post-it or, even worse, directly on your computer! A good password is useless if anyone has access to it.
Make it easy to create a password
To create your password, you can do it yourself or use programs that will come and create it for you . For example, the Firefox browser already offers this feature, you can learn more about it here .
Thanks to the CNIL website , you can generate a password using a sentence! A very good mnemonic device to remember the password .
Good practices on the web
If you use a password manager , such as the one from Google, be on your guard. Indeed, you have to be careful because with this type of manager, you put all your eggs in one basket! You will therefore need to protect the account associated with the manager with a reinforced password.
By securing it, you can also add two-factor authentication . It can take time to set up and slow down your connections, but it will be the last defense if your password happens to be compromised anyway!
Always be on a private connection and on a site that has HTTPS security (check if a padlock is present to the left of the site URL).
To sum up
A good password is:
- A minimum of 16 characters
- Randomly placed characters.
- A use of lowercase, uppercase letters, numbers and special characters.
- Unique and which remains stored exclusively in your memory!
Also Read: Tips For Passwords And Security