myIT Tip of the Week
Passphrases vs. Passwords
Like many of you, we find it difficult to create new, unique
passwords when we have to change them.
It can be awkward to find the right combination of uppercase letters,
lowercase letters, numbers, special characters, non-repeating characters, etc,
etc. And then, having to remember them
is tough! We would, and do suggest the
use of passphrases. Passphrases are generally easier to remember,
and easier to make longer, which can add another element to the security of the
password. With any passphrase, it’s a
good idea to add uppercase letters to them and also add random numbers.
For example: wehavetwobrownhorses is good, but to
meet our complexity standards it could become weHave2browNhorses (adding capital letters and numbers). It’s still
easy to remember and easy to type.
Another way to increase the strength of Passphrases, is to
use random words strung together.
For example, window
staple red moose could become windoWstaplereDmoos3
(again, adding capital letters and numbers).
Both of the above examples are easier to remember than a
string of characters, such as B7r#qrlt9!
And ultimately, we need to be able to remember our password/passphrase
without writing it down on a sticky note on our computer, or desk.
Want to see how your password stacks up? Try this website
