There’s a lot of bad password behaviour going around. You might share your password with someone else, or you might choose something easy to crack. There are some people who even conveniently write their password on a post-it note that’s stuck to their computer.
However, probably the most widespread bad behaviour involves using the same password across different sites and platforms. So, you might use the same username and password for your email account as you do for your Game of Thrones forum.
Here’s why that’s a bad idea.
Hackers Know We’re Lazy
Hackers are well aware of the fact that most people like to use the same password between platforms. They’re quite happy for you to keep doing so, it means that gaining access to one account will usually involve gaining access to others. When a hacker or malicious program gets hold of your login information, it’s almost a certainty that they’ll try using that username and password with every account associated with your email address.
There’s Always a Weak Link
Sometimes security isn’t up to date. To take the example provided above, your email account probably has tighter security in place than your Game of Thrones forum. As they say, ‘a chain is only as strong as its weakest link’. Unfortunately, so is a network. You could be as careful as possible with one account, but that won’t matter if you use the same login information for something else.
Encourages Poor Password Management
If you’re using the same password across different accounts, it probably isn’t a very strong password. By changing it up between different sites and platforms, you have the perfect opportunity to create stronger combinations. Additionally, you’ll be less tempted to use easily guessable information, such as your date of birth, if you need to keep coming up with new passwords.
Easy to Make a Change
Finally, keep in mind that it’s easier than ever to put together new passwords. Simply invest in a password manager – these programs will create new passwords automatically, storing them securely so you don’t even need to remember them yourself.