So you think hackers have stolen your password? You're not the only one. 
Perhaps you've noticed strange activity on your email account or frequent pop-ups on your computer. Perhaps it's just a hunch. 
But how can you know&nbsp;for sure?
There are many warning signs that you've been the victim of a data hack:
<ul>
<li>Your device is slower than normal.</li>
<li>You use more data than normal.</li>
<li>Videos take longer to load.</li>
<li>You received an email notification about a password change you didn't make.</li>
<li>An online account no longer accepts your password.</li>
</ul>
However, hackers can steal your passwords and identity&nbsp;without you ever knowing. That's why it's so difficult to tell if you're the victim of a hack.
This guide will help you work out if hackers have stolen your information and tell you how to stop it from happening again.&nbsp;
Prevent hackers from stealing your data by incorporating TeamPassword into your tech stack. This password manager for teams comes with a range of security features like two-step verification and password encryption.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up for a free trial</a>&nbsp;today.&nbsp;

<h2>Have I Been Hacked? How Do I Know?</h2>
There are various ways to tell whether hackers have access to your information:
<ul>
<li>Look for unusual activity on your account. This activity includes logins to your social media accounts from unfamiliar locations or mass messages sent from your email account.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look for security emails from account providers that warn about failed login attempts or password changes you didn't make.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look for changes in performance on the devices, apps, and websites you use. For example, see if videos take longer to buffer than normal.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Look at your browser's password manager (if you use one) and check that nobody has changed these credentials.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
All the above can be a guessing game. You might have a feeling that you're the victim of a hack but don't know for sure. 
Checking a stolen password list like "Have I Been Pwned" clears up some of the confusion. This tool searches across multiple data breaches &mdash; when hackers take stolen passwords and usernames and post them online &mdash; to see if cybercriminals have compromised your personal information. 
Here's how to use this stolen password list:
<ol>
<li>Enter your email address on the main page.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Click "pwned."</li>
<li>The website will search thousands of databases to see if hackers have stolen your personal information.</li>
<li>If you receive the "Oh no &ndash; Pwned!" message, it means hackers have posted sensitive information associated with your email address (passwords, addresses, phone numbers, etc.) somewhere online.</li>
<li>If you receive the "Good news &ndash; no pwnage found!" message, it means the website could not find your information on the internet.&nbsp;</li>
</ol>
Note: Just because the website can't find your data on the internet, it doesn't mean hackers haven't compromised your personal information.
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-for-small-businesses" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Password Manager for Small Businesses</a>

<h2>Which Passwords Did Hackers Steal?</h2>
Establish which passwords hackers stole in a data breach so you can take quick action. Websites like "Have I Been Pwned"&nbsp;won't&nbsp;tell you which passwords are at risk. You'll only learn whether hackers have compromised the data associated with a particular email address. 
Note: Sometimes, hackers might have access to your email address and other personal information but not your password. It's hard to know for sure.&nbsp;
If hackers have access to your data, it's a good idea to change&nbsp;all passwords&nbsp;associated with the compromised email address. If you use your email address for several online accounts, change the passwords for these services. Updating these passwords might take you a while, and remembering the new passwords leads to additional problems. (Keep reading to find a solution.)
Here are some other tips:
<ul>
<li>When choosing new passwords, use combinations of lowercase letters, uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Passwords that use all these elements are stronger than those that don't.</li>
<li>Don't write your passwords down because this increases the risk of identity theft.&nbsp;&nbsp;</li>
<li>Don't tell anyone your new passwords.</li>
</ul>
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/the-most-secure-way-to-share-passwords" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Most Secure Way to Share Passwords</a>.

<h2>How Common Is a Data Hack?</h2>
More common than you think. Hackers were responsible for more than 4,000 attacks every day in 2020, and the total number of compromised records exceeded 37 billion. That's a 141% increase from 2019. Much of this compromised data appears on the dark web, where cybercriminals use it to facilitate illegal activities such as identity theft and money laundering.&nbsp;
If you have been the subject of a data hack, you are not alone. However, it's important to act quickly to prevent hackers from accessing your personal or financial accounts.&nbsp;
There are other types of cybercrime to consider. Cybercriminals use techniques like phishing, where they impersonate people online and trick victims into handing over their personal information. Phishing now accounts for more than 80% of all cybersecurity incidents, and criminals steal $17,700 every minute in these attacks.&nbsp;

<h2>What Kind of Information Do Hackers Steal?</h2>
Hackers steal all kinds of personal and financial information:
<ul>
<li>Names</li>
<li>Email addresses</li>
<li>Usernames</li>
<li>Passwords</li>
<li>Addresses</li>
<li>Phone numbers</li>
<li>Bank account details</li>
<li>Credit card numbers</li>
<li>Social Security numbers</li>
<li>Insurance information&nbsp;</li>
<li>IRS information</li>
<li>Photos</li>
<li>Private message</li>
<li>SMS messages</li>
</ul>
Nothing is off-limits for hackers, and these criminals go to great lengths to steal your data. Once they have access to the information above, hackers can transfer money from your bank accounts, use your identity to apply for financing, and damage your credit file.&nbsp;
Read more:&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/the-scariest-data-breaches-of-all-time" target="_blank" rel="noopener">The Scariest Data Breaches of All Time</a>.
TeamPassword is the best password manager for teams. Features include two-step verification, password encryption, easy password sharing, and more.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Get a free trial now</a>&nbsp;and learn how TeamPassword keeps you safe online.&nbsp;

<h2>Have I Been Hacked? How to Stay Safe.</h2>
There are several ways to improve online security and prevent hackers from accessing your personal information:
<ul>
<li>Use the latest security software and apps when using devices and browsing the internet.</li>
<li>Carry out regular risk assessments where you evaluate your security software.</li>
<li>Back up personal data to a reputable cloud service instead of keeping it on your device.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Don't share personal information with other people.</li>
<li>Create a security management strategy for your organization and share it with all team members.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
Using a password manager is another way to stay safe online. The best ones encrypt your online passwords so hackers can't access these credentials, and you can keep passwords in a secure cloud-based vault and not have to remember them. There are various password managers online, including free ones available through most internet browsers, but not all tools are the same.&nbsp;
If you work alongside a team, consider TeamPassword. It's the&nbsp;<a href="https://www.teampassword.com/" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password manager for teams</a>&nbsp;that require world-class security and performance. This all-in-one password solution helps teams like yours store, manage, and share passwords in the safest way possible.&nbsp;

<h2>How Can TeamPassword Help?</h2>
TeamPassword prevents hackers from stealing your organization's most sensitive data with an incredible range of password management features. Enterprises of all sizes use TeamPassword to manage passwords, including tech startups, digital marketing agencies, creative agencies, and software and development teams.
Here are some&nbsp;<a href="https://teampassword.com/features" target="_blank" rel="noopener">TeamPassword features</a>&nbsp;that prevent situations involving a stolen password:
<ul>
<li>Random password generation that creates unique passwords for websites.</li>
<li>Two-step password verification.</li>
<li>Activity and logging tools so you can discover who has access to password management features.</li>
<li>Secure encryption technology.</li>
<li>Email notifications about password management actions.</li>
<li>Passwords stored securely in one place. </li>
</ul>
<h2>Final Word</h2>
If you're looking for the answer to the question, "Have I been hacked?" it's difficult to know for sure. Preventing hackers from compromising your data in the first place provides a better resolution. TeamPassword lets you store and manage passwords in a secure environment and minimize the effects of a stolen password so you can avoid hackers stealing your data and continue to collaborate on team projects.&nbsp;
With features like password encryption, two-step authentication, and random password generation, TeamPassword is the best password management solution for teams that want to improve online security.&nbsp;<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Sign up for a free trial</a>&nbsp;now.

Have I been hacked? Here's how to check if you have and learn how to stop hackers from stealing your data. | TeamPassword Blog

Have I been hacked? Here's how to check if you have and learn how to stop hackers from ...

Have I Been Hacked? How to Know for Sure.

Passphrases are the newest way to create passwords. They are often considered more secure and easier to remember than traditional passwords, but what exactly is a passphrase? Simply put, passphrases are passwords created by putting multiple common words together instead of a randomly generated set of letters, numbers, and characters.
Here&rsquo;s everything you need to know about passphrases to decide if you should use them.
<ul>
<li>Passphrases are often better than passwords because they are longer.</li>
<li>Using unrelated words and adding characters and numbers makes passphrases more secure.</li>
<li>You should never use the same passphrase for multiple accounts.</li>
<li>A password manager can help you store and share your unique passphrases.</li>
</ul>
TeamPassword is the best way to store passphrases online. Don&rsquo;t believe us? <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today and try for yourself.
<h3>Table of Contents</h3>
<ul>
<li><a href="#what" rel="follow">What is a passphrase?</a></li>
<li><a href="#how" rel="follow">How secure are passphrases?</a></li>
<li><a href="#pros" rel="follow">The pros and cons of passphrases</a></li>
<li><a href="#should" rel="follow">Should I use a passphrase?</a></li>
<li><a href="#8" rel="follow">8 steps to creating and remembering a strong passphrase</a></li>
<li><a href="#TeamPassword" rel="follow">TeamPassword is the best way to store and share passphrases and passwords</a></li>
</ul>
<h2 id="what" is="" a="" passphrase="">What is a passphrase?</h2>

It seems like everyday we hear about a new &ldquo;<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/what-is-the-future-of-passwords" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">future of passwords</a>&rdquo; concept, from single sign on (SSO) to biometrics or multi-factor authentication (MFA). Unlike all of these other solutions, passphrases are really a low-tech way to make passwords more secure and easier to remember.&nbsp;

Simply put, passphrases are a set of three to five words put together to create a very long and therefore secure password. Here&rsquo;s an example:

Passphrase example: MonkeyPlainsMilkEurope

At 22 characters long, it&rsquo;s already pretty secure. However, you could make it more secure by substituting numbers and characters.

Passphrase example: Monkey.Pl4ins.Milk.Eur0pe!

What&rsquo;s really valuable is how much easier it is to remember. In fact, you&rsquo;ll probably remember &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; a week from now.
<h3>Passphrase vs. password</h3>
Passphrases are a set of common words put together and used as a password. Conversely, when looking at a password, it&rsquo;s a random jumble of letters, numbers, and characters.&nbsp;
Here&rsquo;s an example from our <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">free password generator</a>: ac=oei$EdrN5`2k

There&rsquo;s no question that is a hard password to guess, but is it really that secure? At 15 characters long and no discernable pattern for a dictionary attack, it would force computers to run a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/what-is-a-brute-force-attack-and-are-you-at-risk" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">brute force attack</a>.&nbsp;

However, even the simplest passphrase could be more secure. Our example above, Monkey.Pl4ins.Milk.Eur0pe!, is also changed enough to make a dictionary attack impossible, is far longer (24 characters), and is easy to remember.&nbsp;

In fact, you might never forget &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; again!&nbsp;
<h3>The problems with passwords</h3>

<a href="https://xkcd.com/936/" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">XKCD</a> summarized the problem with traditional passwords in one of their comics. Essentially, passwords are usually not long enough to trick computers running brute force attacks, but they are still too long and complicated for humans to remember.

That&rsquo;s completely backwards.

Ideally, we want easy for humans, hard for computers passwords and not the other way around. That&rsquo;s where passphrases come in. &ldquo;Monkey.Pl4ins.Milk.Eur0pe!&rdquo; is very, very hard for a computer to crack, while you&rsquo;ve probably memorized for life &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; at this point.
<h2 id="how" secure="" are="" passphrases="">How secure are passphrases?</h2>

<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/how-secure-is-my-password" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Passwords are only as secure as the way they are stored.</a> That&rsquo;s the same for passphrases. If you have a super complicated password on a sticky note in the corner of your monitor, then you do not have a secure password. Since passphrases are easier to remember, they are often stored in the brain, making them more secure than equally long random passwords.

That being said, most people require hundreds of passwords, and even though passphrases are easier to remember, that doesn&rsquo;t make 200 of them easy to remember.&nbsp;
<h2 id="pros" and="" cons="" of="" passphrases="">The pros and cons of passphrases</h2>
Passphrases can certainly be considered better in a lot of ways than passwords. However, they have some of the same shortcomings. Here are the advantages and disadvantages of passphrases.
<h3>The advantages of passphrases</h3>

Let&rsquo;s look at the two main advantages of passphrases:

<ol>
<li>
Passphrases are easy to remember.
</li>
<li>
Passphrases are long and complex.
</li>
</ol>
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/pS4AyqRbqFiMkvSdRjbQ" alt="undefined">
<h4>Passphrases are easy to remember</h4>

No human can remember passwords that look like the example above, &ldquo;ac=oei$EdrN5`2k&rdquo;. It&rsquo;s just too hard. However, you can probably already say the passphrase we&rsquo;ve been using without reading it, &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo;.
<h4>Passphrases are long and complex</h4>

<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/lets-talk-about-password-complexity" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Password complexity</a> really comes down to two points:

<ol>
<li>
Longer is more complex.
</li>
<li>
Using more types of characters (upper- and lowercase letters, numbers, and character) is more complex.
</li>
</ol>

Of these, the first point is more important. That&rsquo;s why just &ldquo;MonkeyPlainsMilkEurope&rdquo; is already a very strong password. Changing it to &ldquo;Monkey.Pl4ins.Milk.Eur0pe!&rdquo; brings the complexity level even higher.

Comparing both to a very complex password like &ldquo;ac=oei$EdrN5`2k&rdquo; above shows how much more complex a passphrase can be.&nbsp;
<h3>The disadvantages of passphrases</h3>

It&rsquo;s hard to come up with specific disadvantages of passphrases. However, it is important to remember that they still have three of the same big vulnerabilities as passwords:

<ol>
<li>
A passphrase is not necessarily more secure.
</li>
<li>
Passphrases are still vulnerable to the same storage mistakes.
</li>
<li>
A passphrase is easy to remember, but hundreds are not.
</li>
</ol>
<h3>A passphrase is not necessarily more secure</h3>

Remember that dictionary attacks exist. If you pick words that are commonly used in passwords to make your passphrase, then you are at risk of dictionary attack. For example, &ldquo;PasswordPasswordPassword&rdquo; is still going to be cracked in seconds. If your words are short, for example &ldquo;DogIceUp&rdquo;, then you still have an easy-to-crack password.
<h3>Passphrases are still vulnerable to the same storage mistakes</h3>

If you store passphrases in unsafe locations, for example a sticky note on your monitor or a Google Sheets document, then it is still at risk of being stolen. If someone can find your passphrase, then it doesn&rsquo;t matter if it&rsquo;s long and complex.
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/buKeFWj8RHe0Ju6BtO9r" alt="undefined">
<h3>A passphrase is easy to remember, but hundreds are not</h3>

You are probably getting tired of &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; at this point because it is stuck in your head. However, if you need 200 accounts, then it might not be the easiest task to remember 800 words.&nbsp;

If you cheat and use the same passphrase across your accounts, then <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/have-i-been-hacked-how-to-know-for-sure" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">getting pwned</a> once means hackers have all of your information.&nbsp;

This leads to the next question.
<h2 id="should" i="" use="" a="" passphrase="">Should I use a passphrase?</h2>

Yes, passphrases are great. If you are looking for a super strong password for your email account or password manager, then a passphrase is a great option. Use a super complex passphrase to keep these key accounts safe.&nbsp;

However, it&rsquo;s not recommended to use passphrases for every single account you need to access. Trying to remember hundreds of passphrases is impossible. It&rsquo;s best to use a handful of passphrases to protect key accounts and then let a password manager remember the rest of them for you.
<h2 id="8" steps="" to="" creating="" and="" remembering="">8 steps to creating and remembering a strong passphrase</h2>

<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/how-to-build-a-passphrase" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Building a passphrase</a> is easy. Actually, it can even be fun!

Here are 8 steps to follow to create and remember a strong passphrase:

<ol>
<li>
Avoid common phrases: Using four random words can create a strong passphrase. Using a common phrase like &ldquo;TomBradyIsTheGOAT&rdquo; will leave you vulnerable to dictionary attacks.
</li>
<li>
Jokes are easier to remember: If you think something is funny, then you&rsquo;ll remember it. However, it won&rsquo;t necessarily be an easy to predict phrase for a computer or someone making a social engineering attempt. For example, &ldquo;NoisyGiraffeInfestation&rdquo; is funny but not exactly what you&rsquo;d think would go together.&nbsp;
</li>
<li>
Add an unusual word or two: This is the point where you pull out your thesaurus and pick one of the alternative words. For example, I&rsquo;ve always liked &ldquo;parsimonious&rdquo; instead of &ldquo;cheap&rdquo; to describe someone unwilling to spend money.&nbsp;
</li>
<li>
Avoid common password words: We all know &ldquo;password&rdquo; should be avoided, but did you know <a href="https://cybernews.com/best-password-managers/most-common-passwords/">ice, rice, tea, and pie</a> are the most common food items in passwords? It&rsquo;s best to avoid anything in the top 100 most common passwords at a minimum.
</li>
<li>
Substitute in numbers and symbols: Just like normal passwords, passphrases should also have upper- and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Where possible, consider unusual substitutions to prevent advanced dictionary attacks. While &ldquo;4&rdquo; is often used for &ldquo;A&rdquo;, consider &ldquo;7&rdquo; for an upside-down &ldquo;L&rdquo;.
</li>
<li>
Practice typing your passphrase: Type out your passphrase 20 or 30 times to make sure you don&rsquo;t forget. Even if you&rsquo;ve memorized &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; for life, &ldquo;Monkey.Pl4ins.Milk.Eur0pe!&rdquo; isn&rsquo;t quite as easy. Since passphrases should be used to protect your most important accounts, you don&rsquo;t want to forget yours!
</li>
<li>
<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/how-often-should-you-change-your-password-the-importance-of-password-safety" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Update your passphrase regularly</a>: Just like all of your passwords, passphrases will eventually be stolen by a hacker. To protect yourself from stolen passphrases, update yours regularly (roughly every three months is recommended).&nbsp;
</li>
</ol>
<h2 id="TeamPassword" best="" way="" to="" store="" and="" share="">TeamPassword is the best way to store and share passphrases and passwords</h2>

Passphrases are a great new way to create complex passwords that are still easy to remember. If you&rsquo;ve read this far, you&rsquo;ll never forget &ldquo;monkey plains milk Europe&rdquo; and that&rsquo;s the whole point. They are long and easy to remember.

However, it is still not easy to remember hundreds of passphrases, so use them for your core accounts and then let a password manager create, store, and update your other passwords for you.&nbsp;
 <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today to see why TeamPassword is the easiest way to store passwords online and share them with your team.

Passphrases use multiple common words to create passwords instead of random letters and characters, making them secure and easy to remember.

Passphrases are the newest way to create passwords. They are often considered more secure and easier to remember ...

What is a passphrase and should you use one?

Passphrases are the newest way to create passwords. They are often considered more secure and easier to remember than traditional passwords, but what exactly is a passphrase? Simply put, passphrases are passwords created by putting multiple common words together instead of a randomly generated set of letters, numbers, and characters. ...

Passwords and passphrases are essential in the digital age. With so much of our lives online, we must ensure that our accounts and personal information remain secure. But what is the difference between a password and a passphrase, and which is better? Let&rsquo;s take a closer look.
<h2 dir="ltr">What is a Password?</h2>
A password is a string of characters, such as letters, numbers, and symbols, used to authenticate a user's identity. When you create an account on a website, you are usually asked to choose a password. You enter this password when you log in to the website to prove that you are who you say you are.
Passwords have been around for a long time and are still widely used today. However, as hackers become more sophisticated, using strong passwords to protect your online accounts is becoming increasingly important.
<h2 dir="ltr">What is a Passphrase?</h2>
A passphrase is similar to a password, but instead of a random string of characters, it is a series of words. For example, "correct-horse-battery-staple".&nbsp;
The hyphens are important, as they increase the number and type of characters, thus the passphrase's overall security. You can use any symbol to separate the words and increase security.&nbsp;
Passphrases are becoming more popular as people realize that they are easier to remember than passwords while still being secure. Due to their length, they resist brute-force attacks, where an attacker tries to guess your password by systematically trying every possible combination of characters.
<h2 dir="ltr">Passphrase vs. Password: Which is Better?</h2>
So, which is better: a passphrase or a password? The answer is that it depends on the situation.
Passwords are still suitable for some situations, such as when it&rsquo;s not important to remember the password, or when a system significantly limits the number of characters you can use.
Passphrases rely on having a lot of characters (typically 20+) to be secure. If you&rsquo;re dealing with an outdated system that limits you to 16 characters, you&rsquo;ll be better off with a <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">randomly generated password</a> that includes a healthy mix of numbers and symbols.&nbsp;
For many situations, passphrases are a better choice. They are easier to remember, while still being very secure. 

<h2>How to Create a Strong Passphrase</h2>
For most people, <a href="https://www.cnbc.com/2016/10/06/passwords-are-the-weakest-link-in-cybersecurity-today-michael-chertoff-commentary.html" style="color: #40d8e3; text-decoration: underline;" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">the weakest link in their security is their password</a>. There are a few strategies to write good passphrases that I recommend.&nbsp;
Start by choosing a few of your favorite things. For example, I will start with my favorite band, Guided by Voices. I will also use one of my favorite songs from them, like &ldquo;Echos Myron.&rdquo; Take some words from each source, and mix them up with some significant numbers for you.
VoicesJMY6ASMyron7988Liberty
This password is constructed of the third word from the name of the band, a license plate number for a car, the second word from the song title, part of a phone number, and a standout term from the song. Since you built this phrase yourself, you should be able to remember it quickly, and you now have a 28-character password!&nbsp;
Passphrases improve your password security by helping you remember a long string of characters that don't make sense to anyone else. If you build all of your passphrases like this, your passwords will be nearly impossible for another human to guess.&nbsp;
You can take it further by substituting letters or numbers for symbols. For example, in the password above, you can replace all the &lsquo;i&rsquo; characters with the &lsquo;!&rsquo; symbol. This will break most of the dictionary words in your password, making it even more impenetrable and easy to remember!
Here are some tips:
1.Use a Random Combination of Words
The key to a strong passphrase is randomness. Don't use a common phrase or saying that someone else might guess. Instead, use a combination of random words that have no connection to each other or only have meaning to you.&nbsp;
2. Use a Long Phrase
The longer your passphrase, the more secure it will be. Aim for at least 20 characters or more.
3. Include Numbers, Symbols, and Capital Letters
While a passphrase comprises words, you can still include numbers, symbols, and capital letters to make it even more secure. For example, you could replace letters with numbers, such as "l3monad3", or include symbols, such as "!n3w_y0rk_C1ty".
4. Don't Reuse Passphrases
Just like passwords, you should never reuse a passphrase across multiple accounts. If one of your accounts is compromised, an attacker could use the same passphrase to access your other accounts.
In summary, passwords and passphrases each have their own use cases. Passwords are still suitable for some situations, but passphrases are a better choice if you need to remember your login details. When creating a passphrase, aim for randomness, length, and complexity, and never reuse the same passphrase across multiple accounts. By following these tips, you can help keep your online accounts secure.
Most people have well over one hundred online accounts. You&rsquo;ll never remember 100 unique passphrases, so get a password manager. <a href="https://teampassword.com/pricing" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Try us out for free today</a>!

Passphrase vs. Password. Which one should you choose? They each have strengths and weaknesses depending on the context. Learn the difference.

If you’ve been keeping up with the news, you know that the internet is essentially the Wild West. ...

Passphrase vs. Password: Which Keeps You Safer?

If you’ve been keeping up with the news, you know that the internet is essentially the Wild West. Hackers and career criminals take advantage of computer users by extorting them for ransom and forcing them to pay in bitcoin. Like in the real world, criminals can attack when you least expect it. But just like in the real world, you can become more precautious, gain some spacial awareness, and make yourself safe when surfing and working on the web.

Passwords are currently integral to security measures. That has been true for many years now. However, passwords cause many problems. They are hard to remember, and we are required to know too many of them&mdash;sometimes even hundreds. In addition, they can be stolen and leaked on the dark web. Those two sentences combined cause even more trouble.&nbsp;
When you need to know many hard-to-remember passwords&mdash;after all, the simple ones are easy to crack via <a href="about:blank">brute force attacks</a>&mdash;you might be inclined to take shortcuts. That might be <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">password reuse</a> or <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/should-i-use-my-browsers-built-in-password-manager">relying on risky storage methods</a> to keep track of all your credentials.
Indeed, passwords have become the single biggest threat to online security. The increasing complexity of passwords leads to people reusing them, hackers are becoming more adept at stealing them, and the data found online makes it increasingly profitable to commit cybercrimes. This is a recipe for disaster, and something needs to be done for there to be a secure future of passwords.
If all of this weren&rsquo;t worrisome enough, companies are using more and more cloud and online services, which require their employees to share login credentials across a greater ecosystem of software, all of which is vulnerable to attacks.
Despite all this, usernames are now often just your email address, meaning hackers only need to find your password since the username is intrinsically linked to you. So what is the future of passwords? Well, different experts have different opinions, and it is hard to say who will be proven right. Our guess is that it will be a combination of some or all of the solutions described in this article, as well as some truly unexpected technological breakthroughs.&nbsp;
In our quest to become more secure, passwords become less and less easy to remember. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of securely remembering your passwords while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.
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<h2>The advantages and disadvantages of passwords</h2>
Are passwords doomed to the dustbin of history, or do they still have some redeeming qualities? Like all security solutions, passwords have both advantages and disadvantages.
<h3>Password advantages</h3>
Passwords are easy to implement using software. They are also very cheap to run. Unlike two-factor authentication, biometrics, or any of the other advanced systems discussed below, the only real costs are the implementation. There is no fancy hardware or software to maintain over time.&nbsp;
In addition, users can delete or modify passwords easily, which is not always possible with other solutions. (Random shower thought: If your company uses facial recognition, would they pay for Botox if you called it &ldquo;updating your login credentials&rdquo;?)
<h3>Password disadvantages</h3>
Simply put, the entire concept of passwords is flawed. Anything easy enough to remember is going to be hacked so quickly that it isn&rsquo;t really a security feature at all. Conversely, any password actually strong enough to keep a hacker out is difficult to remember.&nbsp;
Remembering multiple passwords of that strength is nearly impossible, which leads to reuse. Since any individual site could be hacked, using the same password across many sites leaves you extremely vulnerable. Your bank or company probably has an impressive security system, but if you use the same credentials for a random chat board, then you are essentially reducing your banker or employer&rsquo;s security level to that of the least secured site you frequent.&nbsp;
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<h2>The future of passwords</h2>
What is the future of passwords? Well, first of all, we should be asking: What are the futures of passwords? Indeed, even the definition of "password" is going to be complicated in the future as every site will mean something different.&nbsp;
Some sites will use two-factor authentication (<a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/password-manager-with-2fa">2FA</a>), while others will use a <a href="about:blank">passwordless</a> system. Some devices will be dealing with <a href="about:blank">biometrics</a>, while others passphrases. Some users will prefer <a href="about:blank">single-sign-on (SSO)</a>, while others will stick to the proven security and convenience of a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/whats-the-best-small-business-password-manager">password manager</a>.
Below, we will describe just a few of the many advances that you will see as part of the future of passwords:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two-factor authentication</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Passphrases</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Single sign-on</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Passwordless</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Zero login</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password managers</li>
</ul>
Don't let your company fall victim to extortion emails, credential stuffing, and other password vulnerabilities. Let <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> take care of security while you focus on growing a successful business!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> to test TeamPassword with your team members today.
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<h2>Two-factor authentication (2FA)</h2>
Two-factor authentication is basically what it sounds like&mdash;instead of using a single authentication step involving your username and password, there is a second step where you provide further credentials.&nbsp;
The most common system for 2FA includes an SMS message to your phone number. Once you type in your username and password, the system sends you a text message with a one-time password (OTP), usually a six-digit number code, to type in during the second authentication step.&nbsp;
This has mostly replaced an older version of 2FA where you provided questions and answers to prove you are who you say you are because they were vulnerable to social engineering. That is, malicious actors could figure out your first pet&rsquo;s name, your childhood best friend, or the street you grew up on and then waltz through this second step of authentication.
While 2FA with SMS codes has helped reduce the risks of brute force or dictionary attacks, a new attack arose to break through the SMS step. Indeed, hackers have found ways to port phone numbers to a different SIM card without the owner&rsquo;s permission to harvest these 2FA codes.
That is why secure 2FA OTPs are now sent to authentication apps, the most popular being Microsoft&rsquo;s app called Authenticator.&nbsp;
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<h2>Passphrases</h2>
Passphrases are, in essence, many long passwords. Instead of writing the password &ldquo;dog,&rdquo; you pick the phrase &ldquo;I walk my dog Sparky,&rdquo; which might be written without spaces as &ldquo;iwalkmydogsparky.&rdquo; The sheer length of the passphrase makes it more secure than the base password while not being harder to remember.&nbsp;
In the future of passwords, allowing for longer password lengths to accommodate passphrases is a very simple-to-implement and low-cost step in higher security. Unfortunately, many sites still limit the length of passwords to 12 characters.
Passphrases can also be adapted similarly to normal passwords by changing the capitalization of different letters, adding numbers and characters, etc. For example, &ldquo;iwalkmydogsparky&rdquo; can then be changed to &ldquo;1.w4lk-My_d0g=Sp4rKy&rdquo;.
The benefit of passphrases is that, even though they are very long and hard to guess, they are often quite easy to remember compared to a random set of letters, numbers, and characters.
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<h2>Single sign-on (SSO)</h2>
The single-sign-on system allows users to use a single set of credentials once to use many separate services. This is done by all the services having trust relationships. As you move from one secure site to another, the <a href="about:blank">SSO</a> system passes tokens behind the scenes to confirm you have permission to enter the site.&nbsp;
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<h2>Passwordless</h2>
Passwords have gone from the entirety of digital security to its greatest liability. This has led many people to argue the future of passwords should be no passwords at all. <a href="about:blank">Biometrics</a> has been at the forefront of the <a href="about:blank">passwordless</a> revolution. Fingerprints and/or facial recognition are increasingly used by portable devices such as smartphones.&nbsp;
It is likely that passwordless solutions will be a part of any login ecosystem of the future. Whether using SSO or 2FA, biometrics are likely to be part of the future of passwords.
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<h2>Zero Login</h2>
Some companies might do away with logins entirely. While your bank might actually call you when you try to log in from a new IP, Amazon is currently testing systems that will measure your typing speed and pressure to constantly confirm your identity while you use their site.
In these systems, the goal is to confirm your identity constantly through behavioral means and then only ask a password when the system detects anomalies in how you type, search, etc. In this case, only hackers will be prompted for passwords.
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<h2>Password managers</h2>
While the future of passwords is diverse systems designed to keep you more secure while not taxing your brain remembering a longer and longer list of more and more complex passwords, passwords will not disappear entirely.&nbsp;
These complex passwords&mdash;and a new one for every site&mdash;are paramount to your security. For now, the best solution is a very secure and user-friendly password manager that takes all the difficulty out of using passwords.
The best way to secure your IT infrastructure is to use a password manager that includes sharing features. A password manager like TeamPassword offers high-level encryption and two-factor authentication so that only the right people can make sense of the passwords.
Before anyone can access the list of shared passwords, they must log in to the platform using their personal password and a short-term authentication code.
Teams often need to share passwords to access mutual accounts, including Wi-Fi. However, you don't have to put your data at risk to make this possible. You can use<a href="https://teampassword.com/"> TeamPassword</a> to securely generate, store, and share Wi-Fi passwords within a team.&nbsp;
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If you&rsquo;re unsure where to begin, <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">sign up for a TeamPassword free trial</a> to secure your shared passwords once and for all.

This article explains the future of passwords, the types of passwords that will be used in the future, and passwordless security.

This article explains the future of passwords, the types of passwords that will be used in the future, ...

What Is the Future of Passwords?

Everything you need to know about making secure passwords and storing, sharing, and organizing them securely.

A passwordless future may materialize, but for the time being the vast majority of services rely on the ...

Ultimate Guide to Password Security (2023 Edition)

A passwordless future may materialize, but for the time being the vast majority of services rely on the uncomplicated functionality of username/password. Use the Table of Contents to skip to the information you need. Organize your passwords What if a password manager gets hacked? Create strong passwords Turn on 2FA ...

If you&rsquo;ve been keeping up with the news, you are more than aware that the internet is essentially the Wild West right now. Hackers and career criminals make a fortune exploiting computer users, and extort them for ransom, paid in bitcoin. Just like in the real world, criminals can attack at any time. But also just like in the real world, you can become more streetwise, gain some spacial awareness and make yourself safe when surfing and working on the web.
For most average people,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jungledisk.com/blog/2018/04/23/what-makes-a-password-strong/">the weakest link in their security is simply their password</a>. In 2018, the phrase &ldquo;password&rdquo; is even a bit of a misnomer. It&rsquo;s much better and much safer to use passphrases. There are a few strategies to write good passphrases that I recommend. Start by choosing a few of your favorite things. For example, I will start with my favorite band, Guided by Voices. I will also use one of my favorite songs from them, like &ldquo;Echos Myron.&rdquo; Take some words from each of your sources, and mix it up with maybe some meaningful numbers to you.
Let&rsquo;s give it a shot:
VoicesJMY6ASMyron7988Liberty
This password is constructed of the third word from the name of the band, a license plate number for a car, the second word from the song title, part of a phone number, and a standout word from the song. Since you built this phrase yourself, you should be able to remember it easily, and you now have a 28-character password! Passphrases can be super powerful because it makes it very easy to remember a long string of characters that would make very little sense to anyone else but you. If you build all of your passphrases like this, your passwords will be nearly impossible for another human to guess. You can take it another step further by substituting letters or numbers for symbols. For example in the password above, you can replace all the &lsquo;i&rsquo; characters with the &lsquo;!&rsquo; symbol. This will break most of the dictionary words in your password making it even more impenetrable, while being just as easy to remember!
Also, our new password manager,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jungledisk.com/blog/2018/03/06/jungle-disk-acquires-teampassword/">TeamPassword</a>, offers a password generation tool with options to specify password length and character sets. This makes it easy to generate and save secure passwords for any service you use. Additionally,&nbsp;<a href="https://www.jungledisk.com/blog/2018/07/11/did-you-meet-teampassword/">TeamPassword</a>&nbsp;encrypts all passwords with a master key that you set before sending them to their servers, so no one is able to read them unless they have your master key.
See how well that works? And it&rsquo;s easy. Go have some fun updating your passwords, and remember to change them frequently!

For most average people, the weakest link in their security is simply their password. It’s much better and much safer to use passphrases.

For most average people, the weakest link in their security is simply their password. In 2018, the phrase “password” ...

Let’s Talk About Password Complexity

For most average people, the weakest link in their security is simply their password. In 2018, the phrase “password” is even a bit of a misnomer. It’s much better and much safer to use passphrases.

While there is no hard and fast rule, experts agree that it is wise to change your passwords every 90 days. Yup, every 90. If the very thought of going through each and every one of your 127 passwords and updating them every 90 days makes you want to click off this article - don&rsquo;t.&nbsp;
With a little knowledge, this tedious task can be made easier and safer. We&rsquo;ll also share why it&rsquo;s an essential part of securing your accounts and that it's:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Worth your time, and</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Not as overwhelming as it seems if you&rsquo;re using the right tools</li>
</ol>
Aside from learning to spot <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/your-passwords-are-only-as-secure-as-your-teams" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">social engineering attacks</a>, regularly changing your passwords is one of the easiest actions you can take to minimize the probability of being hacked.&nbsp;
<h2>What&rsquo;s the point of changing my password?&nbsp;</h2>
Does changing my password really make a difference?&nbsp;
Statistics from 2019 found that over 1 million passwords are stolen every week, and that number has only increased during the pandemic. Today, there are over <a href="https://www.securitymagazine.com/articles/97825-24-billion-usernames-passwords-available-on-the-dark-web#:~:text=There%20are%20more%20than%2024,to%20new%20Digital%20Shadows%20research." rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">24 billion username and password combinations available on the dark web</a>.&nbsp;
Changing your passwords absolutely makes a difference in keeping your accounts safe, provided they&rsquo;re strong. Some stolen passwords are exploited right away, but others are leveraged months later. Changing your password could foil months of a cybercriminal&rsquo;s work, which may lead to them focusing their attention on lower-hanging fruit.
<h3>Are my accounts more secure the more I change my password?</h3>
Yes, and no. Provided you are using randomly generated or unique passwords of 12+ characters with symbols and numbers, then updating your most valuable accounts frequently absolutely keeps your accounts more secure.&nbsp;
Frequent, scheduled password changes are only an issue when the task is thrust upon an uneducated employee who hasn&rsquo;t been given the right tools for the job.
Most software solutions that mandate frequent password changes are rendered virtually useless by not giving the user the proper tools. People feel annoyed at being forced to change and memorize a new password, and often game the system, first adding a 1, then a !, then a 2 etc. I was certainly guilty of this at past jobs.&nbsp;
Requiring people to change their passwords without providing a password manager (more on this below) irritates people and does little to bolster your company&rsquo;s security.
Cybersecurity exists on a spectrum: convenient and frictionless on one end, and security on the other. In a perfect world you would change your password every day, but the cost/benefit analysis buckles when you realize that a program like <a href="https://www.zdnet.com/article/following-oldsmar-attack-fbi-warns-about-using-teamviewer-and-windows-7/" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">TeamViewer can get hacked</a>, rendering a simple security measure such as a password useless.&nbsp;
Ultimately, a combination of new, complex passwords and a <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/one-time-passwords-vs-two-factor-authentication" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">second authentication factor</a> is the best we can do.&nbsp;
If your systems require the best available security, look into hardware keys such as Yubico, Google Titan, and Thetis.&nbsp;
<h2>How to change your passwords</h2>
The most common reason people cite for not wanting to change passwords is the time it takes. It&rsquo;s a manual process, and right now there&rsquo;s no way around that. But if you're not using a password manager, your vision of what the process looks like may be needlessly convoluted.
The unknown can be scary.
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/kE8Uzu4ESfebb0whlxAV" alt="undefined" width="752" height="386" />
With a password manager, updating passwords is as simple as:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Navigate to the &ldquo;change password&rdquo; page of your account settings&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Click your browser extension. The extension will most likely have pulled up the appropriate record, but if not simply search for it&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Click &ldquo;edit&rdquo; in your password manager on the account you&rsquo;re updating</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Use the Password Generator to create a new, strong password</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Save the password in your manager and on your account</li>
</ul>
Change your passwords with a movie or music in the background! There&rsquo;s no reason it has to be all boring.&nbsp;&nbsp;
<h3>How to make strong passwords</h3>
If the account you&rsquo;re using allows for symbols, then generating a long, random string of symbols, digits, and letters is the easiest and safest option.&nbsp;
If you need to remember the password, try creating a passphrase. Passphrases are strings of words, with a few symbol and number substitutions, that are easy to remember but hard to guess. Part of the reason passphrases are effective is that when it comes to password strength, <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/tips-and-tricks-to-create-a-strong-password" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">longer is better</a>. Don&rsquo;t use song lyrics, lines from poems, or anything that can be found in a Google search.&nbsp;
<h3>What are bad passwords?</h3>
Every year, a few websites take the time to bemoan the state of password management by compiling the <a href="https://www.tomsguide.com/news/worst-passwords-2022" rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">worst passwords of the year</a>. The list typically looks much the same. These passwords can be cracked in less than a second by modern software, yet continue to be widely used.&nbsp;
Avoiding bad passwords is mostly common sense. If you use a password generator or take the time to create a 14+ character passphrase, you&rsquo;re probably good. The key is to avoid patterns and personal information.&nbsp;
If someone is choosing to target you, they will scour the internet and social media for personal information. Pet&rsquo;s names, birthdays, your first car&hellip;it&rsquo;s hard to remember everything you&rsquo;ve ever said on the internet. We recommend avoiding such personal information when building your password.
Here are a few that always make the worst passwords list:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">123456</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">123456789</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">qwerty</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">password</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">12345</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">12345678</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">111111</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">1234567</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">123123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">qwerty123</li>
</ul>
<h2>What is a password manager?</h2>
So far, I&rsquo;ve asseverated that a password manager is a critical tool in your mission for effective password hygiene. But what is its purpose?
In its most basic form, a password manager is a single vault that stores unique passwords for all your accounts. The benefit is that you only need to remember one master password to access the vault.&nbsp;
A good vault such as TeamPassword uses <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Client-side_encryption#:~:text=Client%2Dside%20encryption%20is%20the,as%20a%20cloud%20storage%20service." rel="follow noopener" target="_blank">Client-Side Encryption</a>, which means that even TeamPassword employees, or anyone with access to TeamPassword&rsquo;s database, cannot see your passwords. They also feature AES 256-bit encryption and security accreditations such as ISO 27001, SOC 1 and SOC 2, SSAE 16 and ISAE 3402.
The best vaults allow users to share passwords with team members - be they friends, family, or colleagues. With organizational tools like groups and different user settings, you can control who sees what without exposing your data.&nbsp;
<h3>Should I let my browser save my passwords?</h3>
While Chrome is working to make its password manager more secure, it does not provide enterprise level security or secure sharing.&nbsp;
Chrome is designed to be the most convenient browser on the market, and it succeeds. But if your Google account is breached, your passwords will be revealed. Most of us sync our Chrome profiles so that we can access bookmarks from anywhere. This works against us if one of our devices is stolen.
I won&rsquo;t claim that a real password manager is as convenient as letting your browser handle everything. As I said above, cybersecurity is often a tradeoff between easy and secure. However, if you need to share passwords with team members or family, then Chrome is definitely not the appropriate tool. A dedicated password manager built for sharing is both easier to use and safer.&nbsp;
<h3>How does a password manager work?&nbsp;</h3>
Let&rsquo;s start with what a password manager is not.&nbsp;
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Not a magical tool that automatically updates all your account passwords without you lifting a finger.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Does not guarantee that you&rsquo;ll never be locked out of an account again - you could accidentally save different passwords between your password manager and the account you&rsquo;re trying to manage.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Does not replace account settings or have administrative control over your accounts. That is, just changing your Instagram password in your password manager does not actually change your Instagram password. You still need to go to your Instagram account settings and make the change there.&nbsp;</li>
</ul>
What does it do?
By storing your sensitive credentials in a host-proof and locally encrypted vault, a password manager stores complex passwords for all your accounts while only requiring you to remember the master password that accesses your vault. Team plans let you safely share account credentials with your team without the credentials leaving an encrypted environment.
<h2>Is TeamPassword a good password manager?</h2>
TeamPassword is one of the best - especially for sharing passwords on teams.
TeamPassword exists so teams can effortlessly access the credentials they need&hellip;and only the credentials they need. Here are a few of the features that make this possible:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Unlimited number of completely customizable groups such as Marketing, HR, and Billing</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Records can be part of multiple groups</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Admins grant or revoke access to each group with the click of a button</li>
</ul>
TeamPassword is designed so that your team will actually use it. The interface is simple and only shows you what you need. We integrate with Google SSO for seamless login into your vault.&nbsp;
<img src="https://cdn.buttercms.com/S5jNIC3TtuXldRHK5V4w" alt="undefined" width="511" height="418" />
We offer a mobile app and extension so your records are accessible everywhere, all the time.
If you&rsquo;re looking for an affordable, easy-breezy to set-up password manager for your team, please <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">sign up for our free trial</a> and let us know what you think.&nbsp;&nbsp;

We suggest changing your passwords every 90 days. Overwhelmed? Here are some tips to make it easier and reasons why it's worth it.

We suggest changing your passwords every 90 days. Overwhelmed? Here are some tips to make it easier and ...

How Often Should You Change Your Password?

How Often Should You Change Your Password? The Importance of Password Safety

Password encryption is essential to store user credentials stored in a database securely. Without password encryption, anyone accessing a user database on a company's servers (including hackers) could easily view any stored passwords.
Even a strong 32-character password created using a <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">secure password generator</a> is useless without password-encryption! If someone can read your password on a server, they can use it simply by copy/pasting it&mdash;no matter how long or complicated the password might be!
Encryption scrambles your password before saving it on the server. So, if someone hacks the server, instead of finding password123, they find a random series of letters and numbers.
In this article, we're going to explore the world of password encryption, why <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/tips-and-tricks-to-create-a-strong-password">strong passwords matter</a>, and how you can practice better password management!
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">TeamPassword</a> is the password management solution for small businesses! Create, store, and share login credentials safely with employees, contractors, and clients. <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> today!
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<h2>Understanding Password Encryption</h2>
To explain password encryption effectively, we must first grasp the language. Several terms might be unfamiliar, so here is a quick intro to password encryption terminology.
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Key: Used to lock and unlock passwords using a random string of bits. You get private and public keys that crypt and decrypt data differently, but we won't get too deep in the weeds with keys!</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Bits: A logical state with one of two possible values, including 1/0, true/false, yes/no, or on/off as typical examples.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Block (block cipher): A deterministic algorithm operating on fixed-length groups of bits, called blocks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash function: The algorithm that uses the key to create password encryption and decryption. A hash function is essentially a piece of code that runs every time someone saves a password or logs into an application.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hash: A random series of numbers and letters representing your password. The hash function uses your hash instead of the raw password for authentication.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt: Additional letters and numbers appended to the hash</li>
</ul>
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<h2>How Does Password Encryption Work?</h2>
When you save a new password, a hash function creates a hash version and saves that on the server.&nbsp;
Every time you log in using your password, the hash function recreates the hash to see if it matches what's stored. If the hashes match, the algorithm passes the authentication and logs you in.&nbsp;
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Original password: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Hashed password: 6AF1CE202340​FE71BDB914AD5357​E33A6982A63B</li>
</ul>
While this might seem secure, simple hashed passwords aren't hack-proof.
The hash function only creates a unique hash for each password, not each user. So, if multiple users have the password, Pa$$w0rd123, the hash will be exactly the same.
To overcome this encryption vulnerability, engineers salt passwords so each hash is unique, even if the passwords are identical.
<h3>How Salt Works</h3>
A salt appends a unique value of 8 bytes (16 characters) to the password before the hash function creates a hash. This way, even identical passwords are unique before the hash function.
For example:
<ul>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Two identical passwords: Pa$$w0rd123</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value one: E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Salt value two: 84B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one before hash: Pa$$w0rd123E1F53135E559C253</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two before hash: Pa$$w0rd12384B03D034B409D4E</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password one hashed value (SHA256): 72AE25495A7981​C40622D49F9A52E4F15​65C90F048F59027BD9​C8C8900D5C3D8</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Password two hashed value (SHA256): B4B6603ABC670​967E99C7E7F1389E40​CD16E78AD38EB1468E​C2AA1E62B8BED3A</li>
</ul>
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<h2>5 Common Password Encryption Methods</h2>
<h3>1. Data Encryption Standard (DES)</h3>
While applications no longer use Data Encryption Standard (DES), it's important to mention this password encryption method because of its history and influence on more secure modern standards.
IBM developed DES as a 56-bit encryption technology in the early 1970s. The NSA adopted and improved DES before it was approved worldwide as the encryption standard.
However, since the late 70s, hackers have been able to break DES encrypted passwords. In 1999, ethical hackers managed to break a DES key in under 24 hours.&nbsp;
To make DES more secure, engineers created Triple DES and later Advanced Encryption Standard (AES), which we still use today.
<h3>2. Triple DES</h3>
Triple DES uses three 56-bit keys (blocks) to create 168-bit encryption (some security experts argue that Triple DES is only 112 bits strong). Although Triple-DES is slowly being phased out, many financial institutions still use it to encrypt ATM PINs.
<h3>3. Advanced Encryption Standard (AES)</h3>
AES is the new encryption standard&mdash;trusted by the United States Government and many other prominent organizations globally. At 128 bits, AES is sufficiently secure, but most organizations prefer heavy-duty 256-bit encryption.
At <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">TeamPassword</a>, we use 256-bit encryption to store passwords, ensuring the highest levels of security for our clients. We're also a <a href="https://teampassword.com/security">secure hosting provider</a> holding multiple security accreditations.
Hackers can only break an AES encrypted password through a brute-force attack&mdash;trying password combinations to find the right one.
To counter brute-force attacks, applications will lock an account after a certain number of attempts or use tools like Google's reCAPTURE.
<h3>4. Blowfish</h3>
American cryptographer, Bruce Schneier, designed Blowfish in 1993 as an antidote to the weak DES encryption. Blowfish uses a 64-bit block and variable key length of 32 to 448 bits.
Although Blowfish is more robust than its DES predecessor, the 64-bit block is still vulnerable to attacks, most commonly birthday attacks&mdash;a cryptographic attack that exploits the mathematics behind the algorithm.
To solve Blowfish vulnerabilities, engineers created Twofish in 1998 (128-bit blocks with 256-bit keys) and Threefish in 2008 (256, 516, 1024-bit blocks with 256, 516, 1024-bit keys).
<h3>5. Rivest-Shamir-Adleman (RSA)</h3>
RSA is one of the oldest and widely used to transfer data securely. The encryption works with two keys, two large prime numbers, and an additional auxiliary value.
Due to the complicated encrypting and decrypting process, there is no known method for breaking RSA encryption.&nbsp;
Although widely used for transferring data, RSA is slow and not suitable for password encryption.
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<h2>Why Strong Passwords Matter</h2>
Password encryption can only prevent criminals from viewing saved credentials stored on a server&mdash;but cannot prevent hackers from guessing weak/commonly used passwords. If you <a href="https://teampassword.com/blog/colonial-pipeline-ransomware-attack-dont-reuse-passwords">reuse the same password for multiple accounts</a>, this also puts you at risk!
Encryption is most effective when users create robust, unique passwords for every account. For example, a random 32-character password with letters, numbers, and special characters hashed and salted is near impossible to guess or decode, even using a computer!
In another scenario, let's assume you have a strong 32-character password, but you use it for every account. If hackers manage to steal that password, they have access to every account using the same credentials! Your strong password is effectively useless.
<h3>Improving Your Password Management</h3>
Now that you understand password encryption and the associated vulnerabilities, you can see why strong passwords are essential.
Effective password management is crucial to protect yourself against cyberattacks or in the highly likely event of a data breach where hackers steal your credentials.
Criminals are after the low-hanging fruit&mdash;people who use weak passwords!
5 tips for creating stronger passwords:
<ol>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Create strong passwords for every account. The easiest way to do this is using a password generator. <a href="https://teampassword.com/password-generator">TeamPassword has a free password generator</a> anyone can use to create passwords from 12-32 characters using uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and special characters. We recommend creating passwords as long as the application will allow.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords shorter than eight characters, with 12 being our recommended minimum.&nbsp;</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never reuse the same password for multiple accounts.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Never create passwords with your name, family member's names, or pet's names. With social media, this information is freely available. Criminals can add those names to algorithms for brute-force attacks.</li>
<li style="font-weight: 400;" aria-level="1">Don't store passwords in digital notepads or spreadsheets. We recommend using a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">password manager like TeamPassword</a> to create and store your credentials.</li>
</ol>
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<h2>Why You Need a Password Manager like TeamPassword</h2>
We have so many accounts these days; it's almost impossible to create unique, memorable, secure passwords for each one. A password manager solves this problem.
Instead of remembering the credentials for every account, you only need to memorize the one to log into your password manager.&nbsp;
TeamPassword keeps all of your credentials safely stored and encrypted, so you never have to memorize a password again. Instead of entering your credentials, you use one of TeamPassword's browser extensions (Chrome, Firefox, and Safari) to log into accounts.
<h3>Built for Teams</h3>
TeamPassword's best feature is its ability to share credentials with team members securely. Instead of sharing passwords, you provide access through TeamPassword.&nbsp;
Employees <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">use TeamPassword</a> to log in, meaning you never share raw passwords&mdash;no more worrying about unauthorized access or sharing.
You can create groups in TeamPassword to share access with employees, clients, contractors, and freelancers. When someone no longer needs access, remove them from the group with a single click. No need to change passwords every time someone leaves a project!
<h3>Built-In Password Generator</h3>
TeamPassword features a built-in secure password manager so you can create robust passwords for every account. TeamPassword also ensures you never reuse the same credentials so that you won't fall victim to credential stuffing attacks!
With a built-in password generator, you can change passwords regularly, and TeamPassword will update the new credentials for all users!
<h3>Monitor Login Activity</h3>
TeamPassword's activity log keeps track of every action across all of your accounts&mdash;logins, password changes, new team members, sharing access, and more.
You can also set up email notifications for all TeamPassword actions so that you can react fast to any suspicious activity.
<h3>Get Your Free TeamPassword Trial</h3>
Password encryption is not enough to protect your business from password vulnerabilities! You need a robust password manager like TeamPassword to create, store, and share credentials securely.
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<a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial">Sign up for a 14-day free trial</a> and let TeamPassword secure your company's digital assets.

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In an increasingly digital world, we&rsquo;re switching more and more of our daily lives over to the Internet. While this brave new world is exciting and convenient, it&rsquo;s not without its problems.&nbsp;
The issue of unsafe passwords has been around for a while. But have you ever thought about where and how to store them?
Most of us have several passwords, and we&rsquo;re encouraged to never duplicate them. Some people simply write them all down on a piece of paper &mdash; which is fraught with danger. But others store their passwords electronically.
As you&rsquo;re about to find out, not all electronic systems of password storage are <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/10-things-you-need-to-do-to-keep-passwords-safe" target="_blank" rel="noopener">safe</a>. Here are five of the most dangerous ways to store your passwords.&nbsp;
But before we begin:
Avoid bad idea passwords and dangerous storage methods with TeamPassword. This advanced <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/why-you-need-a-password-manager" target="_blank" rel="noopener">password manager</a> features a selection of security features, including password encryption and two-step verification. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" rel="follow">free trial</a> today.&nbsp;

<h2>1. Email</h2>
Have you ever emailed yourself a password to ensure you&rsquo;re never without it? Great idea, right? Actually, emailing yourself your passwords is a really bad idea, and here&rsquo;s why:
<ul>
<li>Emails are usually sent in plain text. Without encryption, your passwords are susceptible if your email account is ever compromised.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Unsafe passwords sent via email often pass through several systems and servers. There&rsquo;ll also be a copy in your sent folder. If someone else can access your email account, your passwords become vulnerable.&nbsp;</li>
<li>Some email platforms store data locally on a drive. If someone steals your computer, phone, or tablet, your passwords become vulnerable.</li>
</ul>
A really bad idea for passwords is to send them via email &mdash; either to yourself or someone else. <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/blog/have-i-been-hacked-how-to-know-for-sure" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Hackers </a>and scammers are more resourceful than ever, and they can often steal your information before you realize you&rsquo;ve been compromised.&nbsp;
It&rsquo;s tempting to send a quick email to yourself containing unsafe passwords when you sign up for new online services. For the sake of an extra minute or two, don&rsquo;t give fraudsters easy access to your accounts. Use an encrypted email vault to safeguard all your passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>2. Online Documents</h2>
A lot of people like the convenience of saving crucial information using online document systems such as Google Docs. But this is a bad idea for passwords, as these systems are designed for text &mdash; not sensitive data.
Yes, a password might protect your online document manager from unauthorized access. But what happens if that password is compromised? Many document software platforms don&rsquo;t offer encryption, two-step verification, or even the most basic security measures.&nbsp;
If you use online documents regularly, you&rsquo;re probably accessing your account on a regular basis &mdash; across several devices. What happens if you step away for a moment to buy a coffee, speak to a friend, or use the bathroom?
A criminal can access an unattended online document platform in seconds. And if this happens, it doesn't take a lot of effort to steal your unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
<h2>3. Instant Messaging Service</h2>
Instant messaging services provide us with a convenient way of staying in touch with friends and family. WhatsApp, Facebook Messenger, and Snapchat were designed for private online conversations &mdash; not for storing passwords.
People who store their passwords on these apps do so because they believe they&rsquo;re fully encrypted. While that&rsquo;s often the case, it&rsquo;s important to remember that instant messaging services are often left open and operating in the background.
Imagine someone picks up your phone while you&rsquo;re not paying attention. If you left your device unlocked, that person would be able to access your password in seconds.
It&rsquo;s always a bad idea when passwords are stored on instant messaging services. By nature, these apps are designed to operate in the background &mdash; alerting you when someone sends a message. And because they&rsquo;re open, anyone with the device in their hand might be able to steal your unprotected passwords.&nbsp;
Don&rsquo;t fall into the trap of utilizing bad ideas for password storage. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> with TeamPassword, and give your unsafe passwords the protection they require.
<h2>4. Online Note-taker</h2>
Developers design online note-takers for everyday lists and reminders. While they&rsquo;re great for creating to-do and shopping lists, they&rsquo;re not so good for storing unsafe passwords.&nbsp;
An app such as Apple Notes is easy to use, accessible, and convenient. But it doesn&rsquo;t offer two-step authentication, encryption, or any sophisticated form of security.&nbsp;
If your computer or mobile device is unlocked, your saved passwords are vulnerable. In many cases, a criminal would simply need to open the app to gain access to your sensitive information.&nbsp;
OK, you might be extra vigilant when it comes to keeping your phone or computer locked. But hackers are resourceful, and they&rsquo;re very good at discovering unsafe passwords. Once they access your phone, any passwords stored in your note-taking app become vulnerable.&nbsp;
<h2>5. On a Non-Password-Protected Device</h2>
Of all the bad ideas for passwords, storing them on non-password-protected devices is about the worst. You might think that your tablet or laptop never leaves your side. But if your device is ever stolen, you&rsquo;ve given the criminals the easiest possible opportunity to access your saved passwords.&nbsp;
If you&rsquo;re determined to store passwords on a physical device &mdash; which is never a good idea &mdash; make sure the device password is a complex combination of letters, numbers, and symbols. And it should contain at least 12 characters.&nbsp;
<h2>Use TeamPassword for Extra Protection</h2>
Remembering and safely storing a dozen or more passwords isn&rsquo;t a simple task. By locking away all your passwords in a digital vault, you get maximum protection and easy access.&nbsp;
TeamPassword offers a range of <a href="https://www.teampassword.com/security" target="_blank" rel="noopener">security features</a> &mdash; designed to keep your passwords safe. Offering two-step authentication and encryption, this powerful protection system solves the problem of unsafe passwords with ease. Sign up for a <a href="https://app.teampassword.com/dashboard#signup/testimonial" target="_blank" rel="noopener">free trial</a> to see these exciting features for yourself.&nbsp;

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. | TeamPassword Blog

Storing passwords inappropriately can leave you open to fraud and theft. Avoid these storage methods at all costs. ...

TeamPassword Blog

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