1. Why Password?
 
Your computer and the websites you frequently visit contain a great deal of personal information about you. It is important, therefore to ensure that you do not allow your personal details to get into the wrong hands.
We do so much online these days: banking, shopping and social networking have become everyday activities. There are nasty people out there who want to steal from you. Not just your money, but your very identity. It is therefore very necessary to protect yourself by restricting access to your personal data. This is where passwords come in. They make sure that your personal details are only available to you.
 
2. Why a Strong Password?
 
We all like to keep things simple. Passwords can be a pain. So let us make it easy to remember and  not complicate matters. Why not use the same password for all our safe sites. It is too much hassle remembering all those different passwords, after all.
 
Passwords can be seen as the weakest link between your data and those who could most benefit from access to your personal details.  Once the password is cracked they are in. If you use the same password for different applications, your system is vulnerable, along with your online banking and credit card accounts.
 
Examples of weak passwords include your name, username, date of birth, names of your children, even your car registration number. Paul123 would not be a safeguard against my online bank account, for example. Hackers can use programs that try to guess your password by browsing through your files to search for personal information.
Criminals use a number of methods to identify passwords. Dictionary search trawls through online dictionaries to come up with a match to your password. Brute force attacks try every possible combination of keystrokes that can be used in connection with a user name. Phishing, official looking emails purportedly from banks, for example, seek to obtain passwords or PIN numbers from unsuspecting victims.  
 
3. What is a Strong Password?
 
Many websites demand passwords that exceed seven or eight digits, including letters and numbers. Security experts advise even longer passwords, 14 characters are considered sensible. Experts also suggest that you mix upper and lower case letters and utilise characters in lieu of some letters. The key is to use a password that is simple enough for you to remember but no one else, even your close family and friends would be able to identify.
 
4. Further assistance
 
Microsoft has a very good application that rates the strength or weakness of your chosen password.