Passwords are difficult to remember, owing to their importance. We need it for our banking apps, social media profiles, streaming services, loyalty cards, shopping – the list goes on and on and doesn’t seem to end. Not to mention the difficult and never-ending password requirements. We need a capital letter, a symbol, and some digits here. It’s difficult, messy, and tempting to cut corners.
Many of us, in fact. As we begin the New Year, we must overcome that urge and conquer our passwords.
Here’s why (most) passwords are so insecure
We’ve previously learned that the great majority of us create horrible passwords, with the vast majority of those passwords taking hackers an eternity to crack. Even in 2021, tens of millions of people are still publishing classics like “qwerty,” “password,” and “123456789.” That’s enough for some computer businesses to consider doing away with passwords entirely.
“We aim to make things as simple as possible for ourselves.” We frequently rely on familiar and personal words and phrases,” explained Vasu Jakkal in a blog post championing a password-free future. “According to one of our recent polls, 15% of consumers use their pet’s name as inspiration for their password.” Last names and key events, such as birthdays, were also frequently mentioned. We also discovered that one out of every ten respondents admitted to reusing passwords across several sites, and 40% indicated they employed a password formula, such as Fall2021, which will eventually become Winter2021 or Spring2022. “Weak passwords are the entrance point for the majority of assaults on commercial and consumer accounts,” Jakkal noted. Every year, there are 579 password attacks each second, for a total of 18 billion.
Password replacements
Microsoft’s solution is straightforward. If possible, avoid using passwords and instead rely on other methods of authentication, such as its authenticator app. It’s a step toward a password-free future, which Apple and Google are also pursuing. There is one more argument to be made in order to make your password more secure. Of course, you may be safer in absolute terms by not using a password and instead relying solely on an authenticator app or security key, but not every service will provide you with that choice. Working on your password game is one of the best things you can do right now to improve your security.
How to Perform a Password Audit
The good news is that you can easily verify your passwords if you save them in your browser or your phone’s operating system. Earlier this year, I audited all of my passwords using Google’s built-in Chrome control. It takes approximately an hour for someone with a large number of passwords, and it’s really simple to use. Passwords that are repeated are highlighted, as are passwords that are easy to guess and passwords that have been compromised. In many (but not all) circumstances, Google will allow you to click directly on the impacted site’s change password workflow. Apple provides a similar service with iCloud Keychain in the most recent versions of iOS and macOS.
Utilize a password manager
When it comes to creating new passwords, sticking with those tedious but complicated auto-generated passwords is the best option. Nowadays, your browser can do this, however a separate plugin may be preferable. For a more comprehensive, cross-platform experience, you might also consider utilizing a sophisticated password manager such as LastPass or 1Password.
Again, passwords are difficult and time-consuming to create, but getting it incorrectly for the sake of convenience can be costly. You may lose your privacy, access to your internet accounts, and even money. When the stakes are larger than you can handle, it is sometimes worth taking a little additional time to give yourself that extra peace of mind.