Unauthorized access is a potentially major problem for anyone who uses a computer or high-tech devices such as smartphones or tablets. The consequences for victims of these break-ins can include the loss of valuable data such as presentations, emails, and music. Victims may also have their bank account information, money, or even their identity stolen. Moreover, unauthorized users may use someone else's computer to break the law, which could put the victim in legal trouble.
Securing your data from unauthorised access is becoming increasingly important and increasingly difficult as technology, and our exposure to it, continues to evolve. The security of your data ultimately depends on the strength of the passwords you use to secure it.
It is highly recomended that when creating a password you should ensure that it contains a mixture of lowercase and uppercase characters, along with a combination of numbers and special characters. Most websites will accept passwords that are at least 6 characters long and special characters are not always required. Although this is the case it is advisable to ensure that your passwords are at least 8 or 9 characters long with around 3 numbers and at least 1 special character.
When setting a secure password try to avoid using any personal information such as your date of birth, your surname, maiden name, or the name of a pet for example. Also try to remember your password as opposed to writing it down, and try to avoid using the same password for multiple accounts.
Below are some examples of popular websites and their minimum/recommended password criteria, remember that some websites may not accept certain special characters although they may not produce a full list of what they do accept.
Facebook recommends that a password should be unique to your Facebook account and difficult to guess. Your Facebook account may include information such as your profession, favorite films and pets' names, so the password should not be based on anything that can be determined from your account. The password must be at least six characters and should be a mix of uppercase and lowercase characters, numbers and punctuation.
Twitter recommends using passwords that are at least 10 characters long. The longer the password, the better. They encourage account holders to use uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols although they do not specify if any symbols cannot be used.
LinkedIn's password criteria is similar to Facebook, the password must be at least 6 characters. Like all other passwords they are case sensitive and can contain a mixture of uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols. Spaces can also be used
Password complexity rules (for example length, number of uppercase and lowercase letters) for Windows computers are fixed and cannot be set by a Sophos Mobile policy. Different rules apply for local and for Microsoft accounts.
Password must be eight or more characters long and must contain characters from two of the following four categories:
Your Apple ID password must contain at least eight characters, a number, an uppercase letter, and a lowercase letter. You can't use spaces, the same character three times in a row, your Apple ID, or a password you've used in the last year.