Are your passwords unique?

1234. Your dog’s name. A mashup of random numbers and letters. Sure, it’s easy to remember these products of our modern age, but when setting your passwords, it would behoove you to be a bit more creative and a bit more savvy.

If you’re using the same set of passwords or even the same one for every aspect of your online life, we’re here to tell you to stop. There should not be one password to rule them all. This leaves you vulnerable if there is a security breach, opening up your entire online world to cybercriminals.

Tips to Securing Your Accounts with Password Management:

Tip #1: Enable Two-factor Authentication

While admittedly a bit annoying, two-factor authentication (2FA) will save you a lot of headaches in the long run. Yes, you have to get a code via text or email and then punch it in, but this extra step makes it infinitely harder for cybercriminals to gain access to your accounts. It’s just good practice.

Tip #2: Regularly change your passwords

Coming up with a new password every few months is a lot. Inventing strong passwords isn’t a fun chore. Like brushing your teeth, it’s that ounce of prevention that saves you pounds of trouble. The recommended timeline for updating passwords is about every three months. If the thought of coming up with a string of nonsensical letters, numbers and symbols fills you with dread, you’ll be happy with our third tip.

Tip #3: Use a password manager

A password manager is a tool that helps you generate, store, and manage all your passwords, from the important banking and work-related ones to your streaming and music services. A password manager will generate complex and unique passwords for each of your accounts. No more will you have to write down every single password and hide them in your freezer (don’t do this, we don’t recommend it).

So now that you know how to avoid a disastrous password breach, all you have to do now is implement our tips. If all this is still over your head and too much for you to think about, give us a call. We can get you started down the path of safety when it comes to cruising the internet.