“Password” is a term we are more than familiar with in today’s date because we use them everywhere. Some passwords are stronger and better than the others. Some are weaker and very easy to crack.

So what is it that makes a good password good and bad password bad? How can you know for sure if your password is a good one or a bad one? Here is a list of some factors that distinguish a good password from a bad password. Keep these factors in mind the next time you are changing your account’s password:

A Weak Password is Predictable; A Strong Password is Random

A good password is always very random. The more random it is, the stronger it is. If your password has many numbers or patterns, it can be hacked easily by fraudsters and hackers using simple password cracking tools. There are several advanced dictionary based password cracking software available these days. The special characters and numbers you believe to be strengthening your password are actually making it weaker.

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A Weak Password is Easy; A Strong Password is Difficult

If your password consists of only numbers, a hacker can crack it in seconds with the help of password cracking tools. If your password is alphanumeric, it becomes tougher to crack because now the hacker will have to apply more combinations and more effort. If your password is a phrase or quote, it is the most difficult to crack because it becomes very unpredictable.

A Weak Password is Short; A Strong Password is Very Long

The password length is a very critical factor in determining whether a password is strong or weak. The length of a password is what makes passwords secure. A short password can be more easily cracked using password cracking tools as compared to a long password. You should try to make your password as long as possible because password cracking tools will need more computing power and more time to crack a long password.

A Weak Password Has Only Lower Case Characters, a Strong Password Has Upper Case Characters Too

A Weak Password Can Be Found in Any Dictionary; a Strong Password Cannot Be

A weak password can be found in any dictionary. Using a common quote or phrase makes your password more vulnerable to hackers. Instead, use a personal fact such as “Iwasborninthehills”. An example of a weak password is “password1234”. A good password would be along the lines of “%$oLdYE**lLer69-!” Since such passwords are difficult to remember, most people use the same password for every site. This is the biggest risk a person could take. If a hacker cracks one password of yours, he has in a way cracked all your passwords.

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