CB- Strong vs. Weak Passwords Lesson

Strong vs. Weak Passwords

A password is a form of authentication; a way of proving that yes, this is the user that owns this account. Passwords protect access to just about every piece of digital information about us: bank accounts, private email, social networks, chat conversations, and much, much more. In this lesson you will learn about ways your password can be vulnerable to attackers. You will also learn about how you can be proactive in prevention by creating a strong password.

Attackers are constantly looking for ways to uncover a user’s password. Here are a few common ways:

• Guessing
• Brute-forcing, which is basically computer-assisted guessing at a much larger scale
• Stuffing, where attackers find the credentials for one service and try them on another service
• Malware, especially keyloggers
• Phishing scams

Users can defend against malware and phishing scams by being careful about what they download and what emails they believe;however, to defend against the attacks of guessing, brute-forcing, and stuffing, users need a strong password that can’t be easily obtained by someone with malicious intent.

How can you create a strong password?

Remember these techniques to ensure that your password is secure by interacting with the Creating a Strong Password learning object below.

Also take a look at the build strong passwords infographic Links to an external site. as well. 

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