A weak password is still one of the most common ways hackers break-in.

Thanks to sophisticated brute-force-attack software readily available online, hackers can try tens of millions of possible password combinations per second. For example, hacking software can guess a five-character password in under three hours. If you only use lowercase letters, it’s 11.9 seconds.

You need to have a strong password if you have any hope of keeping hackers out, but what does a “strong” password mean?

A good password should be at least eight characters long (or longer!) and have a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols that are hard to guess. Don’t use dictionary words with proper capitalization because even though a password like; Password123# meets the requirements, it’s easily hacked.

It can be hard to keep track of the many different and complex passwords, so we recommend using a password manager.  Consider one that stores usernames and the website URL, as well as the password.  This simplifies the login process, so with a click of a button you are on the site and ready to go.  

Cybercrime is a constant threat, and hackers are targeting small and medium businesses who are “low hanging fruit.” Don’t be their next victim!