Internet Security

A major security breach at RockYou.com led to a release of all the passwords of the users of the site. An analysis was made of the passwords, and the most common passwords were:
1. 123456 (290731 users!)
2. 12345
3. 123456789
4. Password
5. iloveyou
6. princess
7. rockyou
8. 1234567
9. 12345678
10. abc123

The list goes on, but the remainder of the list is equally stupid.
My point here is that we need to use more sophisticated passwords, even for minor websites.
Here are some ideas:
1. Choose a strong password for sites you care for the privacy of the information you store. One idea is to take a sentence and turn it into a password. Something like “This little piggy went to market” might become "tlpWENT2m". That nine-character password won't be in anyone's dictionary.
2. Use a different password for all sites – even for the ones where privacy isn’t an issue. If one particular website gets hacked and someone acquires your password, the password won't be valid on another website. To help me remember the passwords, I write them down and put them in a location that only Yumi and I know about. I also use an encrypted page in OneNote (part the the Microsoft Office Suite) on my computer.
3. I use a false email for websites that ask for your email address when they clearly have no need for it. Examples include newspaper and magazine websites and casual game playing websites. Most websites like this accept the email address "a@b.com".
4. Never trust a 3rd party with your important passwords (webmail, banking, medical etc.)