6 Creative Ways to Easily Increase Password Security
When it comes to cybersecurity, everyday tips for staying safe can seem complicated and unnecessary. How else do we explain why so many online users continue to resist best practices for creating strong passwords, even though it sets them up to be victims of data breaches and identity theft?
The statistics on this are alarming. According to one report, 82% of people with credentials exposed in at least two breaches had used the same password. The most popular password in 2023 was the unbreakable, unguessable “123456.” The year before? It was “password.” Oy. In many ways, passwords are a relic of simpler digital times when most people had a few online accounts, if any. Today, the average user has 100 passwords across their daily work and personal activities. Just look at your phone to see all the shopping, music, finance, communication, social media, and entertainment apps that require passwords. It’s impossible to remember these, so many people now use password managers. And in the future, passwords themselves will likely be extinct.
But until then, passwords are here to stay. The reality is that, when it comes to password security, most users are non-technical folk who must be met where they are on the spectrum of cyber safety. There are plenty of people who, for a variety of reasons, still create — or need to create — passwords that they must actually remember. In these situations, they should adopt password-creating habits that don’t leave them vulnerable to attacks. This type of online resilience doesn’t have to be complicated or hardcore. Thanks to some quirky twists, it is possible to use and protect strong passwords that can be both relevant and more memorable. Here are six clear, clever, and unusual ways to create passwords that will stymie hackers!
1. Emojis
We’ve all heard that special characters amp up password complexity. 💪 But did you know it’s possible to include emojis on many platforms? 😯 My password vault lets me use them. 🫣 Test it out the next time you’re asked for a new password. 👍 One piece of advice: It’s extremely easy to input emojis on a phone but not on a desktop/laptop computer. So beware, if you use emojis as a password and you access your account on a desktop/laptop, it will require you to use mouse or keyboard shortcuts to create these special characters.😁
2. Reverse psychology
As an authentication method, security questions are like cousins to passwords. These are used as an added identity check if you forget your password. Most sites that use them will allow you to pick from various questions. Common ones are, “What is your Mother’s maiden name?” or “In what city did you get married?” Depending on the question — and your answer — they can be just as easy to hack. Never list a street you’ve lived on, a relative’s name, the car you owned, or a school you attended. Those may feel like private pieces of information, but the fact is that they’re probably public records, which means anyone can find them online with a quick search.
Instead, give a security response that turns the correct answer on its head. If you’re sweet on cake and despise greens, your answer to a question about your favorite food could be “spinach.” Make sure you select questions that allow you to use this technique. That way, even a sophisticated hacker who can easily access and attempt to mine your online data for your favorite foods will be unlikely to find this information, let alone guess it.
3. Obscure usernames
When you create an account and log in, a username and a password are typically required — and both tend to be leaked in data breaches. Ditching easily guessable usernames based on your own identity adds extra protection against targeted attacks, where the bad actor is explicitly looking for you.
Pro-Tip!
Using different usernames and passwords for all your online accounts helps mitigate risk if a bad actor gains access to one of your accounts.
The trick is to use a fake username you won’t reuse elsewhere. Go for one related to the account but not you. Let’s look at an example. If I were to create a username for my bank account, I would use “My Mastercard” and not “B Gaylord.” On an insurance account, I wouldn’t use “Becky G”; instead, I would use “Flo Progressive.” So if there is a data breach and the bad actor were to get my username and a password, they won’t easily be able to determine my identity from my username.
Bear in mind that just because they have my username and password, they might be unable to access my account due to other authentication measures, like multi-factor authentication (MFA). MFA is a multi-step process for logging in to an account that requires ID verification factors (such as your fingerprint or a secure code sent to your cell) and a password.
4. Mnemonic masterpieces
Passphrases — as opposed to passwords — improve security. Some of this is pure brute strength — the more characters your passphrase has, the more challenging it is to crack because each additional character exponentially increases the possibility that your passphrase could include different characters. But keep in mind that to be secure, passphrases must be unique for each account, just like passwords.
Here’s a twist that makes even long passphrases easy to remember and not reuse: Use a mnemonic, a learning technique that helps people remember information. It could be based on a rhyme, poem, acronym, etc. The idea is to create a passphrase that resonates with you and relates explicitly to the account it’s being used for. Check out these examples below, rated as “very strong” by this University of Illinois at Chicago password tester.
The password for an email account could be…
IAmBecomingExactlyWhoIWant2Be!
The password for a student account could be…
In2025,I'llGetMyDegreeAndJive.
In both cases, the unique concept combined with precise capitalization makes it extremely difficult for someone to guess this password, piece it together with publicly available information, or crack it with mathematical probabilities.
5. Passphrase palindromes
Passphrases allow for lots of creativity. If your brain loves puzzles, another unusual way to foil hackers is to create a login that makes a palindrome — something that reads the same way backward or forward.
Intrigued but not sure how to give it a whirl? This palindrome generator makes it easy to create palindromes. Just input whatever text you want (ideally, something you would easily remember), and the generator will create your passphrase palindrome.
6. Low-tech lockup
Digital password vaults (aka password managers) are a wise place to store the piles of passwords nowadays. But most of us don’t do this. The sticky note system of password management is as dangerous as it is common. More than half of employees admit to it. Yikes!
If you are a “I’ll write my password on a sticky note so it is easy for me to use it” person, I have a more secure solution. Granted, I recommend using password managers, but if you aren’t quite there, here’s a way to get on the right path!
You might be surprised to hear that it’s possible to record passwords with pen and paper and keep them pretty safe. You have to keep them handy and hidden, which isn’t as hard as it seems. Here’s how you can do it.
First, follow my above guidelines for creating secure online credentials. Next, record them in a special notebook, not sticky notes. Then, stash the notebook with the same care as a social security card or passport.
If your workspace includes a desk with a locked drawer, take advantage of that option. Best yet, you can still use a sticky note! You can use one to remind yourself to lock that drawer whenever you step away from your computer! Write something like “Bolt the gate” on it—nothing too descriptive, just a tiny reminder that makes sense to you and not your entire office.
If you work remotely, try it with cookbooks in the kitchen. Or, consider placing the notebook inside a book jacket and nestling it with your other books.
This might not be advice you hear from most security gurus, but if it helps you become more secure, it’s worth doing. As time passes, consider shifting to using a password manager, like Bitwarden or 1Password!
Don’t delay
Weak, reused passwords are the most common denominator of individually hacked accounts. If you are reusing passwords, start there. Commit to change at least one of those today and then another tomorrow. Keep going until each one is unique. And strike anything with birthdays and the names of pets or kids.
If your password practices leave much to be desired, aim for progress rather than perfection. Use these ideas to keep yourself on track, and feel free to share them with friends and family. My passion is to empower people to keep themselves and what matters most to them safe and secure.
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