Most computers come with some sort of built-in password protection system and any savvy user will tell that it’s important to make sure you take advantage of it. Running a machine without password protection is the computer equivalent of going on vacation but leaving your front door wide open. In short, it’s not a good idea! Unfortunately, setting a password alone isn’t enough to ensure that you have a fully protected computer. In fact, if you set a weak password, you’re not even really increasing your machine’s defenses! There have been many businesses which have failed to use secure passwords and suffered embarrassment when someone made a lucky guess and was able to access their private information. Even the ever-growing social giant, Twitter, has fallen victim to poor password choices in the past!
However, the topic of today’s post involves password security, and more importantly, how to determine if your password is actually protecting your computer. RockYou, a popular third-party application developer for sites like Facebook and MySpace, had a major data leak near the end of 2009. Though we’ll be fully covering that story in a future entry, it’s important to note that the data leaked consisted mainly of personal user information. The 33 million passwords of all of RockYou’s users were briefly posted on the Internet by the cyber criminal who hacked the site. Analysis of these passwords showed that most people aren’t protected and could easily find their personal accounts and private data compromised.
Lessons from RockYou’s Users
The New York Times ran an article a few days ago evaluating these passwords. The number one most used password for the group: 123456. The second most used was 12345. It appears many users neglect the responsibility of coming up with a password that’s actually difficult for an outside party to guess. A significant group of RockYou members even chose to set their password as the site’s name! Though it’s convenient and often tempting to have a simple and easy to remember password, it’s extremely insecure. Hackers trying to get access to the accounts of RockYou users could have simply tried one of these commonly used passwords and successfully broken in. If you notice that the password you use is on that list, change it immediately, using the tips the next section. Otherwise, check the section to confirm your password is protecting your computer from hackers.
Making Your Password Secure
Having a weak password allows cyber criminals easy access to your computer. Use the following tips to come up with a password that’s easy for you to remember but hard for others to guess:
- Try to have a long password (at least 7 characters) to make it difficult for others to figure it out
- Don’t just stick to letters! Mix up your password by using numbers and symbols
- Think outside the box. Don’t use a common word or a personal detail that everyone in your life knows
If you’re hankering for more password tips, check out Microsoft’s helpful online safety guide which shows you how to craft a perfect one. Full disc encryption allows you to take your computer’s defense to the next level. Instead of relying solely on password protection, our encryption software secures your data using the AES block cipher. It also adds another required login which gives you the opportunity to make a special, incredibly challenging password to further secure your private data. If you ever forget your password, we’ve got you covered with a 24/7 Helpdesk which can help you reset it after confirming your identity. If you’re ready to fully protect your computer with Pointsec encryption, sign up for a free trial!
Further Reading
Weak Password Brings ‘Happiness’ to Twitter Hacker [Wired]
One Of The 32 Million With A RockYou Account? You May Want To Change All Your Passwords. Like Now. [Techcrunch]
If Your Password Is 123456, Just Make It HackMe [New York Times]
The RockYou 32 Million Password List Top 100 [reusablesec.blogspot.com]
Microsoft Online Safety [Microsoft]
Image [scc.hu]
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