Shhh… PaSsW0rdz

It’s something we all have and deal with on a daily basis – passwords. We use passwords for just about everything these days – financial, medical, utilities, email, and list goes on and on.

The purpose of a password is to keep our information safe, but how safe is it really? I have found more often that not, we use the same passwords over and over, or some kind of similar variation. We have them memorized, written down on paper, or hidden away within our computer. And my favorite of them all, sticky notes plastered around the computer monitor.

There are some major pitfalls with passwords, you should consider avoiding:

  1. Never keep your passwords in plain site – sticky notes on monitors. Think out easy it would for someone to pick up your password at a glance, like cleaning crews.
  2. Avoid using the same passwords over and over. Once a password is recognized its just a matter of time before your other accounts are found and that password is used.
  3. Never use a word that is in a dictionary, within your password. You would be surprised how quick it takes a computer program to figure it out.
  4. Never use a website to randomly generate a password for you. You never know who is collecting the passwords you are generating.

[pullquote align=”right”]I am personally a big fan of DashLane!  – MyITAssistant Approved[/pullquote]

I recommend using a Password Manager to manage your passwords, keep them safe and so you can use longer and stronger passwords. There are many out there choose from. The top four at the moment are: Dashlane, LastPass, Sticky Password and RoboForm.  Although RoboForm is widely used and has been around the longest, I am personally a big fan of Dashlane! Whatever your choice be, using a Password Manager will solve many of the common issues and pitfalls most of us encounter.

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