You might wonder what the fuss is about in creating strong passwords and changing them often. This is because maintaining online security is as important as your online presence in today’s fast-rising digital age. There is a need to be cybersecurity conscious as cyber-attacks are continuously advancing due to technology; therefore, creating strong and secure passwords is the first step in protecting yourself from cyber threats.
However, changing your password is also important to ensure maximum online security. In this article, we’ll delve into why changing passwords regularly is crucial and the best practices for maintaining online security.
The Importance of Changing Your Passwords Regularly
Passwords are the first line of defence in protecting your accounts from unauthorized access. An attacker looking to gain access to your personal information will try to compromise your account by hacking your password. They do this by random guesses and trials or by looking for passwords in a breached database. To avoid this, regularly updating your password is necessary, as this will reduce the risk of your accounts being compromised.
Using the same passwords for multiple accounts is also risky. While this can be convenient, you are at risk of losing your other accounts if you become a victim of a cyber attack. Regularly changing your passwords and attributing each account to a unique password keeps you and your accounts safe from attackers. Given the following reasons, this is how you know how often your passwords should be changed.
How Often Should You Change Your Passwords?
It has been established that passwords are your first line of defence against cyber threats. Hence, a need to change them regularly. Then the question becomes, how often should you change these passwords? Here are instances that require you to change your password frequently:
After Password Reuse: It is clear now that it is right to use only one password per account. However, In the case of one password to multiple accounts and it is noticed that an account is compromised, changing your passwords across all other accounts where it has been used is your best bet. This will prevent your other accounts from being exposed to attacks.
After a Data Breach: Regularly check to see if your passwords have been breached. This can occur when you use unsecured networks to browse when you are signed in to a website that has already been breached, brute-force attacks and clicking on malicious mail through Phishing. It is necessary to change your passwords immediately if you become a victim of this.
Accounts that you Seldom use: For accounts that you don’t use often or have not used in a while, regularly change the passwords of such accounts or, better still, close down the account if you’re sure that there is no need for it again.
Accounts that no longer have shared access to people: For accounts that previously had access to more than two people, changing the passwords immediately when it is no longer a shared account is important. By doing this, every unauthorized access can be prevented.
Additionally, There is the need to change your passwords often, especially after major events such as moving homes or jobs and after a failed relationship with people who have had access to you before. All of these will help you maintain password hygiene.
Best Practices for Online Security
There are several best practices for online security. It is recommended that you change your passwords every three to six months. For multiple accounts, password managers help to generate and save passwords for each account, relieving you of having to remember numerous passwords which can be tiring. It is also very important to be aware and conscious of data breaches, if you’re notified of your accounts being compromised, the first thing you should do is to change it. Other Practices include:
Creating Strong Passwords: Strong and secure passwords, not just any passwords, is the recommended way of creating passwords. A strong password must be long, with at least 10 characters, including both numbers and symbols, as well as upper and lower case letters. Avoid using guessable personal information like birthdays or names for passwords.
Enabling Multi-factor Authentication: This is an additional layer of security that serves as a verification in the case of unauthorized attempts. By enabling multi-factor authentication, attackers have a lesser chance of cracking your passwords and gaining access.
Implementing Personal Password Policy: Cyber threats are no respecter of any individual. Being cyber security conscious means implementing personal security policies to keep you in check against cyber threats. Policies like browsing over a secured network, using and knowing the best VPN for multiple devices, regularly confirming the source of a mail before clicking and the use of anti-virus/anti-spyware are all important practices for online security.
Conclusion
In maintaining online security, being proactive is key and passwords are the first step to preventing unauthorized access to your accounts and protecting your personal or financial information. This is why it cannot be neglected.
Don’t wait for a breach to take action. Start by checking the strength of your current passwords and consider using a password manager to simplify the process. Update your passwords when need be, regularly check your accounts for suspicious activities, use a password generator for multiple accounts, and, most importantly, implement security policies that help you stay vigilant.
