At 212 Creative, we take website security very seriously. There are so many things to be aware of, like protecting yourself from malware attacks. Have you ever been hacked? Maybe your friends are starting to get emails for Facebook messages from you that you didn’t send? Or even worse, you look at your bank account and realize the balance is way lower than it should be? Maybe you’ve been hacked and don’t even know it. How can you find out? In this informative article from 212 Creative, you will get several tools for checking the security of your password, finding out if you ever been hacked, and some password management tools that are easy to use and low-cost or free.
Check your password
The first thing to check is your password. Do you have a complex password, or something easy for you to remember, like your child’s birthday or your wedding anniversary? How safe is your password? How long would it take a computer hacker figure it out? Let’s dive into how to find out.
Believe it or not, it takes a hacker only about two seconds to crack any password, up to 11 characters, if the password uses only numbers. What! It’s true. If you try to get tricky and add some upper and lower case letters, that will only slow them down only about a minute. Having 6 or fewer characters can be hacked in seconds. Seconds!
How can you make your password stronger?
How can you tell if you have a secure password? At 212 Creative we suggest going to a website like security.org and type in your password to see how secure it is. Just type in your password and it will tell you instantly how long it would take a computer to crack the code.
Ok, So how do you make a stronger password? There are two things to keep in mind:
- Have the password be at least 10 characters in length
- Mix it up. Run the full gamut of numbers, letters, uppercase and lowercase, special symbols and characters.
Here is a handy chart to show you how long it would take to crack if you just had numbers, all the way up to having numbers, upper and lowercase letters and symbols, along with the length of the password.
If you want an easy way to check all of your passwords at once, go to Go to Google Password Manager, sign in and do a password check up to see all of the places you you log onto and how secure the passwords are. You can even change them instantly on the site.
One last idea. If you want to see if your data has ever been breached, or if you have had your information exposed on the dark web, go to a website like haveibeenpwned.com and it will show if your data has ever been compromised, and even list the organizations that have had access to your data. Check it out, it is free, instantaneous and eye opening.
How can I keep track of all my passwords
Ok, I’m convinced. I need complicated passwords, ideally more than 10 characters in length, with a mix of numbers and uppercase and lowercase letters, along with symbols. How can I possibly keep track of all of those different passwords when my old password that I used for everything was just my name and the last four digits of my social security number? So true, so true. Here are two ideas:
- You can use a paid password manager like Roboform. Very secure, easy to use, but there is a small monthly fee.
- You can use a free extension in Chrome called Last Pass. It’s free, super easy to use and very secure.
These days, data reigns supreme and you just can’t be too careful with your personal data. I didn’t take security seriously until I had money missing from my bank account. Boy, that got my attention quickly! The very next day I changed all of my passwords, got a password manager, and have never been hacked again.
Good luck! We hope these security tips from 212 Creative.com will help keep you safe! If you ever have web design or development needs, make sure to call us at (586) 210-5125 or check out our website at 212creative.com. Call us, let’s begin!
