Passwords are the bane of every person that has to set up a new account. It can be frustrating to pick a good password, then sign in the site a few weeks later only to forget the password. But choosing a password such as 12345 or abcdefg isn’t a good idea either. I have found there are some ways to get over the password blues.
- Choose a password that refers to something you love, but isn’t obvious. For instance, you love John Deere tractors but everyone who knows you would guess this. Think of a specific model or a unique phrase that can go with your tractor password.
- Be creative in your spelling. This is one instance where weird capitalization and spelling is encouraged. If it is a John Deere 5510 model password, use something like JoN@dEere55tEn*.
- Write it down! Whether it is on paper or in an electronic file, write it down somewhere.
- An alternative to writing it down is using a password app. I use a program called Datavault. It is just for the Mac. But I also love it because it has an iOS version for the iPhone and iPad. It also has a feature to generate a unique password.
- Be consistent in recording your passwords. Yes, I’ve been bitten by forgetting to record a password more than once.
- Don’t use the same password for any other account.
Yes, keeping track of those passwords can be a little annoying. But in a world where our data can be hacked, it is safer to practice good password hygiene.
By the way, none of my passwords refer to John Deere, John Wayne, John Lennon or any other John.
