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Wondering about the strength of your passwords?
Points North • May 14, 2019
In today’s world, it’s more important than ever to safeguard your online data in every way possible. News stories about hacking and data breaches are becoming all too common, with even major companies being regularly affected. A recent example is Marriott Hotels, who in November 2018 announced that they had discovered a massive data breach potentially involving as many as 500 million people.
So what can you do to make sure your online data is as safe and secure as possible? For many of us, reviewing the strength and quality of our passwords (or passphrases, as you will see below) is a great place to start.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Guidance
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), is a branch of the Department of Commerce and provides technology, measurements, and standards to aide U.S. industrial competiveness in the world. Every few years, NIST issues guidance on how to create strong and secure passwords, and the latest recommendations call for using "passphrases" (a series of associated words) rather than traditional passwords. The three steps below illustrate how you can build a strong passphrase:
Think about familiar items that have a relation to each other, such as items in your living room. Identify associated items that have meaning to you.
Make sure the associations are very unique. Passphrases should be words that can easily go together in your head, but that no one else would ever suspect. As mentioned before, a good example would be the items in your living room (e.g., BlueCouchFlowerBamboo). A bad example would be the names of your children or relatives, since those associations can be easily discerned by others.
Make the passphrase something that you can easily picture in your head; this will help you to recall the passphrase without needing to have it written down. The living room items example works here as well, as it is easy to picture your living room in your mind.
You can see how creating a passphrase rather than a traditional password can lead to a far more unique result, and the more unique a password is, the less likely that it will end up being figured out by someone who may have malicious intentions.
Key Elements to a Strong Password
If you decide that a passphrase isn’t for you and you prefer a more traditional password, NIST has guidance for those as well. Some of the key elements that NIST recommends for creating a strong, secure password include:
A minimum of 8 characters and a maximum of 64 characters
The use of special characters, such as exclamation points and asterisks
Avoiding sequential and repetitive characters (e.g., 12345 or ZZZZ)
Avoiding anything commonly used or easily guessable (e.g., P@ssw0rd)
Learn More about NIST and Cybersecurity
Keeping up with the latest security developments takes time and effort, and NIST is a great resource to utilize. To view their entire report on Digital Identity Guidelines, which contains more detail on the content in this blog, visit https://pages.nist.gov/800-63-3/sp800-63b.html. To learn more about NIST in general, visit their website at: https://www.nist.gov/
So what can you do to make sure your online data is as safe and secure as possible? For many of us, reviewing the strength and quality of our passwords (or passphrases, as you will see below) is a great place to start.
National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) Guidance
The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), is a branch of the Department of Commerce and provides technology, measurements, and standards to aide U.S. industrial competiveness in the world. Every few years, NIST issues guidance on how to create strong and secure passwords, and the latest recommendations call for using "passphrases" (a series of associated words) rather than traditional passwords. The three steps below illustrate how you can build a strong passphrase:
Think about familiar items that have a relation to each other, such as items in your living room. Identify associated items that have meaning to you.
Make sure the associations are very unique. Passphrases should be words that can easily go together in your head, but that no one else would ever suspect. As mentioned before, a good example would be the items in your living room (e.g., BlueCouchFlowerBamboo). A bad example would be the names of your children or relatives, since those associations can be easily discerned by others.
Make the passphrase something that you can easily picture in your head; this will help you to recall the passphrase without needing to have it written down. The living room items example works here as well, as it is easy to picture your living room in your mind.
You can see how creating a passphrase rather than a traditional password can lead to a far more unique result, and the more unique a password is, the less likely that it will end up being figured out by someone who may have malicious intentions.
Key Elements to a Strong Password
If you decide that a passphrase isn’t for you and you prefer a more traditional password, NIST has guidance for those as well. Some of the key elements that NIST recommends for creating a strong, secure password include:
A minimum of 8 characters and a maximum of 64 characters
The use of special characters, such as exclamation points and asterisks
Avoiding sequential and repetitive characters (e.g., 12345 or ZZZZ)
Avoiding anything commonly used or easily guessable (e.g., P@ssw0rd)
Learn More about NIST and Cybersecurity
Keeping up with the latest security developments takes time and effort, and NIST is a great resource to utilize. To view their entire report on Digital Identity Guidelines, which contains more detail on the content in this blog, visit https://pages.nist.gov/800-63-3/sp800-63b.html. To learn more about NIST in general, visit their website at: https://www.nist.gov/
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About us
Points North, established in 1994, is a nationally recognized software company located in Duluth, Minnesota. The Points North team has been dedicated to providing companies of all sizes with the best compliance, reporting, and data aggregation solutions. We focus on learning about the needs of your company and customizing our products specifically for your requirements. Our products include ACA Reporter, Certified Payroll Reporting, Who’s Where, Attendance Advisor, and EEO Reporter. Through our partnerships, software, and customer support we create an experience that is seamless and predictable.
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