Selecting a strong password is crucial to keeping your accounts secure, but sometimes we have such a jumble of numbers and letters in our heads that we prefer to take the easy route: an easy-to-remember combination that we repeat over and over again in different places. The risks that this entails are obvious, so you have to ask yourself… how secure is my password?
Hive Systems has created a table that reflects the time hackers need to crack a password. If you are one of those who use your date of birth or four numbers, be very careful , because they can steal your password immediately. It all depends on different factors: the number of characters, the use of upper and lower case letters, the symbols and the combination of all these elements. The table uses colors to capture the time it will take for thieves to take over your account.
These are the possibilities, from more to less:
- Purple
- Red
- Orange
- Yellow
- Green
How to find a strong password
While a password of just 4-6 characters opens the door to instant theft , as passwords become more intricate the difficulty of hacking progressively increases. It is therefore recommended to use a combination of figures, letters and symbols, both lowercase and uppercase. The most secure passwords (those represented in green) are those that also have more characters. Regardless, the Hive Systems chart changes periodically as technology advances in leaps and bounds.
Many dream of the end of passwords, but until that time comes we will have to ensure that the ones we have are the most secure. No one wants to go through the unpleasant experience of losing access to their accounts . Fortunately, there are other security mechanisms such as two-step verification or bank signature systems.
