Fight Back Against Password Thieves with these 4 Sound Strategies

First Posted: Nov 11, 2019 10:25 PM EST
Close
Fight back against password thieves with these 4 sound strategies

(Photo : photo)

"Pwned"

Adverb. Definition: "To be dominated or defeated soundly in a video game environment. Original phrasing is "Owned", but adapted by video game culture."

Are your weak passwords getting pwned? If so, you might be losing more than a video game, you might be losing access to your bank account, paycheck stubs, Paypal account, credit-card statements, medical records, and social media accounts. Basically your whole (online) life.

Weak passwords are those that can be easily guessed by either a person or a computer program built by hackers and cybercriminals to do just that. If you use easily guessable passwords, like the always popular "password123", you take on the risk of having whatever is in that account stolen, manipulated, or destroyed. 

Fortunately, as quickly as manipulative and malicious software has developed to try and hack your passwords, so too have techniques and solutions to keep them safe.

Here are several tips and tricks you can employ to keep your passwords, and in turn your whole online life, a little bit safer in the modern digital environment.

Don't Enter Your Password on Unprotected Sites

That little lock next to the http line isn't just a decoration, it's a symbol that the website you're on is using encryption to protect your sensitive data. When you see it, there's a definite element of security involved. If you don't see it, don't put your personal data into any field. At best, it's a website that hasn't invested much money in its own security; at worst, you're on a phishing site that's trying to steal your data right out from under you.

Trust Your Browser and Your Antivirus Software

Occasionally your browser will act on and tell you that a site you think is safe really is not. It might reference malicious intent or out-of-date security protocol. It can be tempting to blow this off and keep going about your business, but your computer knows much more about this type of thing than you. Better to be safe than sorry and avoid compromising your accounts.

Use a Password Manager

Password management is helping people get more control back in their online lives. A password manager such as Dashlane uses mathematical algorithms to generate passwords that will bamboozle the most hardcore of hackers and keep them guessing for years while you enjoy your security. The only thing you'll need to remember is a long-string master password that acts as the gatekeeper to your credentials to every other account. No more stumbling through 15 different 15-character combinations of numbers, letters, and symbols, nor trying to write them all down and hide them in your desk. The password manager does all the heavy lifting.

Toughen Up Your Security Questions

If you grew up Maple Street, your mother's maiden name was "Smith", and your first car was a Honda Accord, it's not going to take much longer for a smart hacker to break through your layers of security and get your account opened up, whether they know your password or not. Your security question answers should be just as bizarre as your passwords. No hacker is going to guess that your first boyfriend's name was "8asdfa01!".

See Now: NASA's Juno Spacecraft's Rendezvous With Jupiter's Mammoth Cyclone

©2017 ScienceWorldReport.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission. The window to the world of science news.
* This is a contributed article and this content does not necessarily represent the views of scienceworldreport.com

Join the Conversation

Real Time Analytics