Last week I promised to write an article about personal Cybersecurity. I will explain how to protect yourself in a digital space. I promise no complicated stuff. Just simple and practical tips for everyday use! Let’s get started, shall we?

Passwords

Passwords are the essential aspect of Cybersecurity. They are like keys that open doors to various services, webpages, and systems. Without a good password, you are asking for trouble. It’s like going outside in the middle of the night and looking for a fight. 

Many people tend to reuse passwords or have simple ones—for example, hello123 or password123. But, unfortunately, you lose if one service where you have used that simple password gets hacked and bad guys get a password. So, how to solve this problem? 

Use a password manager! It’s software that helps you to organize your passwords. For example, you can generate a specific password for each service—no more password reuse. It can also remind you when to change a password.

I use Bitwarden. It’s an open-source product with a set of minimal features. What I like personally about Bitwarden, it’s simplicity. Plus, Bitwarden integrates everywhere. You can run it as a browser plugin or a dedicated app. The only drawback is that an encrypted vault is stored in a cloud. 

For some, it’s a deal-breaker, so the Bitwarden team included an option to run your Bitwarden instance. The self-hosting aspect is essential for some organizations that want to run on-premise services.

Suppose a password management system does not interest you. There is another way. Replace your passwords with passphrases. Then, please find a way how to remember them for each service. Invent your passphrase-making algorithm. I am not going to disclose how I do that myself, but it’s pretty simple. Every time I visit one of the services, I remember that passphrase without any digital or paper aid.

A passphrase is a sequence of words—nothing more, nothing less. One such example would be a Bitcoin passphrase—for example,

Of course, there are considerations about how to make a passphrase. With the Bitcoin passphrase example, it was automatically generated, while my passphrases are a bit different. 

Conclusion

I hope you found value in learning a bit about password security. It’s essential to keep passwords safe. Using a password manager will increase your safety and make a hacker’s life difficult. And don’t forget to have a strong password for a vault itself. I would even go to more extraordinary lengths and enable 2FA verification, so if someone compromises your primary password, there is still a last line of defense. See you next week!