Having a secure password is very important in this day and age. Most times I try to pick a password that is relevant to whatever site I am on to make it easier for me to remember. I therefore have a ton of different passwords and I have to keep them written down so I won’t forget which one goes where.
Thanks to my friend, John, at The Sound of One Hand Typing, who is a wealth of interesting tidbits of all kinds and if you are not following him you should, I was directed to a website that will generate random pass phrases. You can read John’s post about it here.
We’ve all seen those movies where the hero starts the computer search for the password that will disarm the bomb or open the safe or whatever and it always manages to find the right code in just the nick of time. Of course, Sherlock Holmes was always able to crack the cipher as well.
The website is called Use a passphrase and it will generate passphrases for you and you can plug your current passwords into it and it will tell you how long it could take someone/a computer to figure out your code.
I knew that phrases were better than just words and I have used the first letter of each word of a phrase sometimes but just for the heck of it I plugged in some of the passwords I use on a regular basis.
I was unhappy with the speed in which someone could crack the password I use on our bank account (608 milliseconds!) so that is one I changed right away. The new one I picked should take 372 centuries for someone to get so I think our money is safe for a while. Plus, even though it is a lot safer than then one I was using, it is still something that will be easy for me to remember.
I’ll be checking my other passwords as well and you might want to give it a try to see how long it could take someone to get into your business. Thanks, John, for the tip!
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Janet's Smiles 
Very timely advice Janet. Thanks for sharing the site John wrote about. You know that I’ve been crazy busy with moving my Mom down here and had family in town helping to get her settled into her new place, which is a nutso time as it is, but in the midst of all this, someone stole my identity and applied for a credit card using MY information and then they had a debit card imprinted with my account number and used it to buy merchandise in some other city. So I had to go through all the hoops of getting a new debit card, alerting the credit bureaus, placing a fraud alert on my name and then waiting for the new debit card to arrive and then going in and changing out all the auto-pay accounts that I use each month for bill-pay and subscription services. What a hassle!! It kills me that someone would do that. I’m with you, why can’t they put that knowledge to good use instead of trying to rip people off. I hate thieves and liars!
So I’m off to go check out that website. Thanks for sharing.
Enjoy your Sunday,
Michele at Angels Bark
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Wow, sorry you had that misfortune! It happened to me once with my debit card. I used the swipe to pay gadget on a restaurant table while I was visiting my daughter at college. By the time I got home (the same day!) someone had already used my number to try and rent an expensive hotel room in a town miles away. Scary to think what these wackos can do! Hope yours all gets resolved successfully!
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Now I just read an article this week that said NOT to pick a phrase because hackers have learned how to figure them out easily. Even if you substitute punctuation for some of the letters. According to the article you need to pick four random words then create your own spelling of these words. I’m going to try this, once I get the energy to create, then learn, my new “words.”
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So much trouble we have to go through! Why can’t people just be nice and leave our stuff alone?
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I get annoyed with passwords–they’re difficult for me to remember when I have to have a number of different ones. I keep a notebook full of user names and passwords. If anyone ever gets hold of that book then they’ve got it all. No big deal though because “all” ain’t that much.
Arlee Bird
Tossing It Out
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I’m with you, Arlee! It was interesting to see the different amounts of time (milliseconds to centuries) that just changing one or two characters could do to the safety. Thanks for stopping by!
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Excellent advice! I’m going to check into this. Thank you.
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It was very interesting when I tried using it. Just changing a few letters of a commonly used password added a lot of time before it could be discovered.
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Janet,
I haven’t changed my passwords in a long time. This is a chore I really hate doing but I know the longer the password is the more secure your account will be. I hate typing long passwords and I probably will misspell it three or four times before getting it right but then I’m locked out of my account. I wish all sites allowed the user to see what is typed. You know to check a little box that says show my password. Of course, that probably has flaws and makes it easier for hackers to steal it, too. *sigh* Why can’t these highly intelligent hackers put their skills to good use instead of ripping off people? Thanks for the information. I may look at the site and think about changing mine. 🙂 Have a good day, my friend!
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Totally agree with you about wanting to see the password I am typing. I change e’s to 3’s all the time but every once in a while I won’t and it would help to see which one I typed. Hate getting locked out! Thanks for stopping by!
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