In the year 2017 and already in 2018 we’ve already seen several data breaches from big companies including the University Medical Center. Some of the most basic information that can be compromised in those breaches, passwords.
“Passwords are the keys to castle right. So, when we talk to our clients about having strong passwords it’s as much complexity as it is using more than one,” said CEO of Bluelayer IT Michael Strong.
Yet when we showed adults and students the top 100 most used passwords of 2017 release by Splash Data we learned that password safety is an issue everyone needs to learn more about.
“It’s been my password since I was a kid and I just thought it was funny and I just like never changed it and it’s pretty much my password for everything,” said a Texas Tech student who asked to remain anonymous.
A mistake that if unchanged could be a problem if his information is compromised.
In fact, according to the company IdentityForce 2017 was the worst year on record for data breaches.
Several companies are popular among youth including Panera Bread, Under Armor, Instagram and even the popular video game Fortnite.
Depending on the information hackers get you could be at risk of losing more than just access to Instagram.
“If those systems get compromised it’s how those passwords get leaked and if they’re the same for a number of applications how that can lead to the compromise of another account and another account and another account,” said Strong.
It’s also why Strong said it’s so important for parents to teach their children good habits for passwords starting at a young age.
One of the easiest ways to do that is manage your children’s passwords early on.
“I think early on with kids and certainly what I do with mine is that I manage their passwords for them but with them at the same time,” said Strong.
One of the biggest mistakes is using the same password for multiple accounts.
“Repeating passwords is a major no no. Simple words and phrases, we see a lot of the last 4 of my social security number or last 4 of my phone number, pets names, street you grew up on things of that nature,” said Strong.
A tip to keep you more cyber safe is make your passwords more complicated.
“The length of password helps add to it’s complexity so if you’re not going to go with letters and numbers and funny symbols and things of that nature the longer you make a password it actually adds to its security as well,” said Strong.
But, one of the biggest rebuttals for complicated or even different passwords for every account is remembering them.
“If you have a password manager to help you take care of that, maintaining 500 passwords is just as easy as maintain 1,” said Strong.
There are several different password managers online that both provide varying degrees of help and security.
You can also use the website haveibeenpwned.com which will scan the dark web to see if your email was compromised in a data breach.
You can also learn more about cyber security at TTU K-12