Cloud Computing and Password Safety

 

Password safety should never be an afterthought. Period. Just this past week it was announced on the news that a popular online professional network's data was hacked into and over 6 million passwords were stolen. The hackers, who were reportedly from Russia, used the stolen passwords to launch an email spam campaign for illegal pharmacy drugs by posing as the professional networking site and installing links within the emails.

Since we are living in an age where the threat of password theft and identity theft is very real, questioning how security your interactions are online, including within the realm of cloud computing is a very valid concern.

With the building popularity of cloud computing, it takes a high level of trust to willingly place your data in the hands of a cloud service provider. Releasing that important data into the cloud can be very intimidating at first; however, the following tips on passwords can help you keep your data more secure within the cloud:

Keep Them Complicated: When it comes to passwords, the rule of thumb is always going to be the more complicated the better. It may be easier to keep all of your passwords the same for each site you utilize, but it's not beneficial. When creating a new password, try to combine numbers, symbols, and letters (both lower and uppercase) into a random fashion, for example: h7%4Gq#. Never ever use the password "123456," "password," or "iloveyou." They are at the top of the list for most used password and can easily be guessed by hackers. It is also not wise to use your pet's name or your child/ spouses name as a password because they too can be easily guessed by hackers. Click here now cloud services

Keep Them Unique: Do not use the same password for more than one site. Each password should be unique for each site you log in to.

Keep Them Private: Lastly, do not share you passwords with anyone. Even sharing a password with a close friend or loved one could potentially be harmful. So play it safe and keep you passwords to yourself.

Following the above tips will help protect your data in the ever-expanding world of cloud computing and are good advice for navigating your way around the internet. In conclusion, don't take password security with a grain of salt. Developing more secure passwords may take some time and effort, but in the long run the benefits far outweigh the alternative.