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  PPC > Computing Guides > How do I...?  

 ...Sort out my passwords

 Kai Chandler gets down to basics with this Computing Guide

Most of us need to use passwords to access various systems. You probably can't use a computer at work or log onto the web without one or more passwords.

Creating, using and remembering the passwords can become a nightmare! This Beginners' Guide gives some tips on how to take control of your passwords and use them securely.

If it’s a chore to dream up new passwords, think of the consequences of others discovering them. Would they have access to funds in your bank? Would they see confidential information at work? Would they be able to send emails in your name? 

Even if you don't share your passwords with anyone, it may be possible to guess them or even to run a program that automatically tries hundreds or thousands of passwords a second in an attempt to crack the code. In a test for this article, Practical PC Update hacked into a password protected ZIP file in under a second by using a popular shareware password cracker. The password was the word ‘test’. Not a good password!

So what makes a good password? 

Good Passwords

·          7 characters or more (up to a length determined by your system)

·          Contain mixed upper and lower case alphabetic characters, numerals, punctuation and other symbols.

·          Should be easy to remember so you’ll not need to write them down

·          Can be entered quickly to minimise the chance of anyone looking over your shoulder

·          Should be changed regularly, say every month

Bad Passwords

·          Any word in a dictionary even if slightly modified eg. by putting a number at the end or changing an L to a 1

·          Names of people, cars or pets

·          6 characters or less (the time to crack a password depends partly on its length)

·          Usernames

·          Car registration numbers

·          Dates

·          Simple words spelt backwards

·          Are ones you share with friends and colleagues or write on Note-It yellow stickies!

Here are two top tips for how to choose passwords that are hard to crack but easy to remember. 

Hint One: Choose two short unrelated words and insert a number or punctuation between the words. Ideally insert some mixed upper and lower case. Here’s an example – cat(6tree

Hint Two: Choose a short sentence or phrase that makes sense to you (but is not a common saying or proverb), use its initial letters and then insert a number or punctuation.  Here’s an example – MmTwGa4M (Money makes The world Go around 4 Me!)

Once you’ve chosen a password you need to remember it. A password stuck on your computer monitor is an open door to others. 

There’s a strong temptation to use one password for everything. Think of the danger – if the password you regularly enter in an insecure web site is the same as the one that protects your savings account then your savings are at risk! At least have several passwords so those protecting more secure applications are not so easily compromised. 

If you don’t think you’ll be able to remember all your passwords then you should take a look at some of the freeware software ‘password safes’ available. Typically, they protect a list of usernames and passwords with a single password which you need to remember. As an example, Whisper is a very easy-to-use password manager for Windows. It encrypts the passwords using the robust public domain Karn (MDC) private-key encryption algorithm. 

You can print out all the details but if that list is found, your security will be completely compromised. 

Whisper has a built-in random password generator and a facility to transfer the passwords using the Windows clipboard. This means that you’ll not need to type them in manually. There are a couple of caveats to this: First, not all services or applications allow you to copy in a password from the clipboard by using Control-V. AOL is an example of one that prevents you from doing this. Second, be aware that if you leave your password in the clipboard it can be accessed by another user so remember to turn your PC off after use. 

Of course as all your chickens are in one basket, you’ll be reassured to know that Whisper creates automatic backups of the database. Remember to make backups yourself and store them somewhere safe away from your PC.