Implement Good Password Practices for World Password Day 2025
In today’s world, we do everything online, and passwords are a big aspect of our online lives. Strong passwords are vital in keeping hackers from accessing our private and most valuable information. May 1st is World Password Day— a great time to change your passwords, update your knowledge on phishing and vishing attempts and strengthen your accounts against cyberthreats.
Best Practices
Here are practices to help you create strong passwords:
- Create Long Passwords: Phrases are harder to decipher.
- Avoid Personal Information: Birthdays, anniversaries, and family-related dates put your passwords at risk of someone guessing them.
- Use Symbols: Including symbols or numbers in your password phrases is always a good idea, e.g., F3d3xSh1ps5tuff%.
- Manage Your Passwords: Using a password tracker app to organize your passwords helps you keep track of passwords and keep them safe.
- Turn on MFA: Multi-factor authentication adds extra security. Add it on accounts when it’s an option.
Avoid Phishing and Vishing Scams
On World Password Day, start watching for these popular phishing and vishing attempts. Scammers send phishing attempts through email, while vishing attempts are through phone calls. Beware of these scams:
- Emails asking for your password so they can “verify” that they are talking to the right person.
- Calls where they ask for your personal information such as birthday, full name, or nicknames. Vishers try to have casual conversations about your family/interests. They then use this information to guess your passwords.
- Emails or calls from someone who claims to work for IT and needs your password. Professionals or software employees will never ask for that information.
- Emails from people you have never met who claim to be in love with you then ask for your bank information and passwords to access your money.
Today is a reminder to venture into your account settings and apply these rules. Keep your information safe behind strong passwords and be wary of who you give your information to. Strengthening your accounts by following these tips will make you less vulnerable to cyberthreats.
Watch CISA’s strong password explainer video to learn more!