You’re on the internet every day, and while you’re having fun, learning, connecting, or doing a job or a hobby, you know you’re in a vulnerable position every single moment. The internet can be a dangerous place, especially for those who roam the cyberspace carelessly. I am talking about security. Obviously, you know the basics. You have a series of passwords for an endless list of sites, because you know that using the same password everywhere is asking for trouble. And of course, you take precautions by keeping your passwords secure. But how much do you know? And more importantly, how strong would your password prove to be if a hacker were to target you? Would it hold or would it fail you, allowing the intruder to wreak havoc with your website, your blog, or your social media accounts?

How long do you think it would take a hacker to find your password?

Here’s what Bloomberg says:

If your password is 6 characters long (lowercase only), it would take a hacker just 10 minutes to crack it.

BUT:

If your password is 9 characters long, and it contains upper and lowercase characters, numbers and special characters (e.g. $, &, *, etc), then it would take 44,530 years to crack it!

Check out this comprehensive list on Bloomberg to see how long it would take a hacker to crack your password today, depending on how long it is and what it contains. Then, head back here to read my best tips as per below.

 

Back already? Right! Here goes:

TIPS TO MAXIMIZE YOUR SAFETY ONLINE

Generally, your password should be a minimum of 8 characters long, and it should contain upper case and lower case characters, numbers and special characters.

Don’t use words that can be found in the dictionary. Don’t use family member names, pet names, as well as the most absurd password in the world: the word ‘password’ itself! (Oh yes, you won’t believe how many people combine laziness and stupidity, enough to choose this!)

The trick is to use a catchphrase you love, or a song title, then type one letter for every word to make up your password. Say, for example, you love the song “I wanna dance with somebody who loves me” by Whitney Houston. Your password then could be:

iwdwshLM

Note I added two uppercase characters in the end to make it harder for that nasty hacker! Now mix it up by adding a few numbers (no birthdays or special days!), then add some special characters and you’re done! Isn’t that a beauty?

iwdwshLM3265#$%

Let that hacker then try to break into your account. If it takes him 44K years, he and his great grandchildren can die trying, right?

I can’t tell you how many alerts I have received from Wordfence, the free WordPress plugin I have installed on this site.

It seems every now and then hackers will try to take control of my site from various IP addresses all over the world (mainly Ukraine, Russia, and  China, for some reason). Do you think I’d still be here posting this, my peace of mind intact, if my password was something stupid like ‘ilovecake’? No, of course you don’t. If you have a WordPress site like me, do yourself a favor and install Wordfence. It’s free, and it’ll tell you all about the threats you’ll be happily bouncing, as long as you have a strong password.

Also, occasionally, people I connect with on Twitter send me very strange tweets, and then a day later they’ll write and apologize, saying their account had been hacked. Why risk it? Why go through that?

Here are some more tips:

Never type in a password from a device you don’t own, like in an internet cafe. A hacker could get your password by detecting your key strokes.

Never type in a password from your own device using a free wifi hot spot. Anyone could steal it from you via the wireless network, but of course, they could also be looking from behind your shoulder.

Careful how you dispose of any notes with your passwords on them. The stories of ‘dumpster-diving’ we all hear from time to time are absolutely true!

Don’t leave paper notes lying around in a public place containing your password and whatever you do, do not store them electronically in a file on your computer. They say this is like hiding your house key by hanging it outside your front door and I couldn’t agree more.

Unless, you’re Einstein or maybe a savant like Dustin Hoffman from Rain Man, you’ll never be able to remember all these passwords by heart, especially as you’re required to change them periodically. So where should you keep them? Personally, I keep them all in one place, in a pocket-sized notebook that I use only for this purpose. I keep it near my desk and make sure to record there every change of password at once, so that I don’t forget.

Of course, there is still a minor risk by keeping this little book in my study, I know, but if an actual robber breaks in and chooses to take this instead of my TV and my stereo, I’ll take the risk! I think it’s way less likely than a hacker looking for any passwords among my computer files.

One last note: I can’t stress enough the importance of having a good antivirus program and a firewall installed. I use F-Secure Safe, which I think is the best of paid options. If you cannot afford to pay, download AVG – a very good FREE antivirus program.

Beware and stay safe!

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