Creating and Managing Strong Passwords

Weak passwords are one of the leading causes of business account compromises. Here's what you need to know. What makes a strong password: - At least 12 characters (longer is better) - Mix of uppercase, lowercase, numbers, and symbols - Not a real word or name - Not related to you (no birthdays, pet names, company names) - Unique — never reused across different accounts Examples: Weak: Summer2024!, Password1, CompanyName123 Strong: xT7#mP2qLw!9vN, kite-horse-blue-42 The problem with trying to remember strong passwords: Most people can't memorize a unique strong password for every account, so they reuse the same one. If that one password gets stolen from any site, every account using it is compromised. The solution: Use a password manager A password manager stores all your passwords in an encrypted vault, locked with one master password. It: - Generates strong unique passwords automatically - Fills them in for you so you don't need to remember them - Syncs across all your devices - Alerts you if a saved password appears in a known data breach Recommended password managers for businesses: - Bitwarden — free for individuals, affordable for teams - 1Password — excellent for business teams with shared vaults - LastPass Business — widely used in corporate settings Password best practices: 1. Use a password manager — this is the #1 recommendation 2. Enable MFA (multi-factor authentication) on all critical accounts (Microsoft 365, email, banking) 3. Never share passwords via email or text message — use a secure sharing feature in your password manager 4. Never use the same password on multiple sites 5. Change passwords immediately if you suspect a breach Never share your Microsoft 365 password with anyone — including IT support. We never need your password to help you.