Web Talk

That’s not the first time I write an article about passwords. You may want to read this article of mine where I speak about the most used passwords in the Internet. However, I am compelled to write again about this topic because there are some Web Talk’s readers who ask me how to be sure that their passwords are not going to be stolen by password-guessing automatic bots which browse the Internet looking for weak passwords. Here are other rules to follow in order to write hard-to-guess passwords.

1. Make large use of symbols which look like words. This to let you remember your passwords  and, at the same time, to prevent you from writing something obvious like : Mary Jane. For example, this simple name and surname could be changed into something like M@r! J@n&
2. Avoid stupid number sequences like: 1234, 1111, 2222, 224422 ect.
3. Mingle words, symbol and words like in this example: m@r!0J3n&
4. Avoid anything which has to do with your personal information. This because, in case somebody manages to steal your password, he will also steal your private infos. This is also known as identity theft. So  don’t absolutely write as a password: Mary Jane 12/09/1967
5. If you are using WordPress and you want to add an extra protection to your password, read this article about how to improve security in WordPress 2.5 and further versions.
6. If what you are missing is some fantasy while creating your passwords, try this online utility called Microsoft Password Checker, and whose task is to let you know if your passwords are good enough or not. Alternatively you can also try this excellent Password Meter.
7. Again speaking about fantasy. If you don’t know what password create because the only good password you can think of is hello1234, here is a nice online utility which lets you help create a password. Its name is password bird.