With technology becoming more readily available to everyone, password safety has never been more important. This article by PCWorld illustrates just how crucial proper password protection can be. Gawker Media is a widely known publication group that runs several blog websites like Gawker, Lifehacker, Gizmodo, and Jezebel. Gawker Media was recently hacked by a group known as “Gnosis,” who stole private information including the email addresses and passwords of over one million Gawker users. The accounts were hacked with little difficulty due to the simple passwords many users had assigned to their accounts. Passwords including “123456,” “monkey,” “trustno1,” and even “password” were easily discovered and used by the hackers to gain access to each account and the private information they held. After analyzing some of the hacked data, the Wall Street Journal found that even the accounts of 15 Gawker staff members were hacked thanks to passwords such as one staffer’s name followed by the number “1.”
Be careful when creating a password and always keep in mind how valuable the information it is protecting can be. Even your social networking accounts hold at least your email address, which if hacked could be a serious imposition and invasion of privacy. The safest passwords typically have up to 14 characters, include numbers, a punctuation mark, and end in a symbol if possible. For more tips and information on how to protect your small to medium sized Garner NC business, contact WingSwept today!
