Information Technology Cloud: Internet Security- Make Sure Your Passwords Protect You

In this day and age, protecting our internet security is very important. We store important information on the internet such as our personal information as well as out financial information. Identities are stolen everyday and getting yours back and clearing up the damage that it can cause is expensive and time-consuming.

One of the most important things you can do is to protect the passwords that you use for your various accounts. Why is this important? Because if someone gets a hold of your password, they can have all sorts of information about you.

Most people use their same password, or a variation of it, for all of their accounts. Needless to say, this is not a good idea. After all, if someone gets that password they can tap into almost any internet account you have and thus breech your internet security.

So what can you do?

First, don't use your same password for everything! And adding “1” after the password in instances when you need a number does not make the password different.

Secondly, don't store your password on your computer. Yes, it can be a pain to type it in
every time, but if someone broke into your house they would be privy to all of your accounts.
Also, don't store your passwords on a notepad right there by your computer, or in a document
on your computer called “internet passwords.” They should be a little harder to locate than that.

You can also use Microsoft's Password Strength Tester. This program lets you enter in a password to see what its strength is. If you give it something that doesn't test very strongly then you need to change it in order to make it more secure.

One thing that you can do is to make your password a combination of letters and numbers. This is more difficult to figure out. Also, don't ever use your social security number, driver license number, or zip code. You shouldn't be storing your social security number on the internet to begin with like that and your zip code is too easy to figure out. In addition, don't use your child's name, your partner's name, or your own name as a password. Again, these are quite simple to figure out.

By following these tips when it comes to your password, you should be able to strengthen your internet security. While it is a hassle to come up with several different passwords and to remember them, it is more of a hassle to straighten out the mess that can result from not doing it.