Six Tips to Better Internet Security
In December of last year, the popular website Gawker was hacked by a group known as ?Gnosis.? They not only got Gawker?s database, they got the passwords of both staff members and readers. If the reported 1.3 million people who had a Gawker account used the same password for other accounts, they would become vulnerable to possible identity theft.
For a lot of people, Internet security means buying a software package, installing it, and going on with the rest of their lives. Most don?t consider the importance of their passwords. But they should.
For small business owners, password security cannot only protect them personally, it can protect their businesses as well. Here are a few tips on what entrepreneurs can do to protect their passwords from hackers. Many of them are based on an article written by Lisa Barone for Small Business Trends.
Don?t use the same password everywhere
While it is convenient, it also makes you vulnerable to hackers who could access all your personal information. The best practice is to use a different password for banking, blogging, and social networking.
Create a tough password for hackers to identify
Additionally, it is a good idea to develop a password that would be tough for a hacker to guess. Good passwords generally have a combination of cap and lower case letters, numbers and useable symbols such as @ and #. Using eight or more characters is also a good idea.
Use a strong password as a foundation for customization
To help you remember different passwords Barone suggests creating a strong unique password and adding the first part of the service?s name at the beginning or end of it. For example, if your password is [apple], and you want to create an Amazon.com account, simply add ?amazn? to the front or back of the word. You might come up with ?appleamazn? as the password and it would be easy to remember.
You can also make it more complex by adding your own set of rules for these prefix and suffix ideas. You may want to scramble them or use four letters for one kind of account and three for another.
Use different usernames
Another alternative to changing passwords is to change usernames. In most cases, a hacker will need to know both the username and password to gain access to your Internet account. Using different usernames can make it more difficult. A different username with a different password will provide maximum protection.
Use a password manager
Password manager tools such as LastPass will help you create strong passwords. You simply create an account in LastPass and it does the rest.
After creating your LastPass account, you can import all your currently used passwords and it will tell you which ones are more hackable than others. It will then, help you develop more secure passwords.
Change your password on important accounts periodically
This may seem a bit ?over the top,? but it might be a good idea if you are concerned about your password on certain websites. Simply change the password, username, or both periodically. It could help maximize security.
To read more about this topic, read Lisa Barone?s article at http://smallbiztrends.com/2010/12/how-to-keep-your-password-safe-on-web.html.