NORFOLK, Va. — We live in a world of passwords! People use passwords to gain access to phones, emails, computers and even homes.
At times, it can feel like they are a pain to create, but they are the final barrier between criminals and your important information.
As May 4 is World Password Day, News 3 wanted to share tips on how to build a strong password to avoid being hacked.
Here are some guidelines to follow when trying to generate a strong password:
- Don't pick something that is easy to figure out, which means avoiding your birthday, favorite numbers, and pet names
- Passwords should be longer than six characters, but a strong one is considered to be 12-14
- Make sure you have a mix between upper and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols
- Set up multi-factor authentication
- Change your password every few months
Cybersecurity expert Rachel Tobac said, "Most people, when they log into their accounts, they reuse their passwords, or they change it just ever so slightly. And when you do that, if you've been in a breach, which all of us have, that means I can take that password and I can shove that into all the other sites that you log into."
Keep in mind, when you're away from your home and logging into sites, the WiFi is not always protected. Click here to see the dangers of using public WiFi and what you should check for before clicking "go."
