We are committed to providing fast, efficient, and affordable software solutions that set new standards in the software development industry.
  • How to Pick a Password - and How Not To
Technology Articles > Software > Security & Privacy > How to Pick a Password - and How Not To

Strange password protection news comes from the UK today. The UK's 'Cyber Security Chief', Tony Neate, has told his public that a password like 'abc123' is perfectly fine. How can this be? Shouldn't a message coming from the Cyber Security Chief be, you know, a little stricter (and possibly more accurate)?

Neate's stance is that any password is better than no password. But, who, exactly, is he targeting with this mindset? People that are new to password protection, but aren't sure what to use for a password - or, perhaps, people that can't think of an option other than 'abc123,' which seems somewhat silly.

Further Investigation

Neate believes that some people may not use any kind of password protection if a proper password can't be thought of. Rather than helping people think of better passwords, he has told the public that 'any password is better than no password.' He went on to say how not having any kind of a password was rather like leaving a front door unlocked - not a smart move.

But, shouldn't Neate be handing out better password options to those people that can't create one? I would think that a simple suggestion would be better than the 'abc123' idea. So, I bring you an entire section of an article filled with possible password ideas - just in case you can't think of something better than 'abc123.'

Great Password Combinations

1. Your favourite colour plus the year that you were born.
2. Using a symbol in the middle of a word
3. The first three letters of your middle name plus the year your cat was born.
4. Three stars plus your middle initial plus your last two street address numbers.

I could go on and on and on. The idea here is to use a combination of symbols (if permitted), letters, and numbers that all add up to one very complex password that no hacker could possibly touch. Sounds good, right? Just remember a few basic rules.

How Not to Create a Password

Do not use the same password for every device that you own. Do not use the same password for your bank account and your email address. Never use the same password for app that you do for your bank account.

In fact, it's a good idea to use a different password for everything that requires a password. How can you possibly remember all of those passwords?

Use a password manager like Meldium (a really great app that stores all of your passwords right on your desktop). Just click on the program that you want to use, and Meldium will open it up for you - password saved and all.

Or, go ahead and give your brain a little bit of exercise. It won't hurt to try and remember a bunch of passwords - it will actually help your brain out. Oh, and do change those passwords bi-monthly. That's a good idea too.

What do you think? Does 'ABC123' suffice? Is this really a better password than no password at all?