Panduan Keamanan Password

Passwords -- terutama yang tidak didukung oleh two-step verification -- adalah garis pertahanan terakhir anda terhadap mata-mata yang mengintai. Panduan ini akan membantu anda memahami bagaimana password menjadi terbuka, dan apa yang dapat anda lakukan untuk membuat mereka tetap terkunci.

Bagaimana password terekspos?

Sebelum kita masuk ke topik bagaimana membuat password yang aman, penting untuk memahami mengapa anda memerlukan kata sandi yang supersecure sejak awal. Lagi pula, anda mungkin berpikir, "Siapa yang ingin meretas akun saya?"

Ada beberapa cara untuk menjebol password akun anda.

• Seseorang diluar sana untuk menyerang anda. Ada banyak orang yang mungkin ingin mengintip kehidupan pribadi anda. Jika orang-orang ini mengenal anda dengan baik, mereka mungkin dapat menebak password e-mail anda dan menggunakan opsi pemulihan password untuk mengakses akun anda yang lain.
• Anda menjadi korban serangan brute force. Apakah seorang peretas mencoba mengakses sekelompok akun pengguna atau hanya milik anda, serangan brute-force adalah strategi untuk login dengan meretas password. Serangan-serangan ini bekerja dengan sistematis memeriksa semua password yang mungkin sampai akhirnya ditemukan password yang benar. Jika peretas sudah memiliki bayangan tentang pedoman yang digunakan untuk membuat password, proses ini menjadi lebih mudah dijalankan.
• Ada pelanggaran data. Setiap beberapa bulan tampaknya perusahaan besar lainnya melaporkan peretasan yang mengakibatkan jutaan informasi akun orang dijebol. Dan dengan bug Heartbleed yang lalu, banyak situs web populer terpengaruh secara langsung.

Apa yang membuat password yang bagus?

Meskipun pelanggaran data di luar kendali anda, penting untuk tetap membuat password yang dapat menahan serangan brute-force dan musuh yang ngotot. Menghindari kedua jenis serangan tergantung pada kompleksitas password anda.

Idealnya, setiap password anda setidaknya terdiri dari 16 karakter, dan berisi kombinasi angka, simbol, huruf besar, huruf kecil, dan spasi. Password tersebut harus tidak ada pengulangan, kata-kata kamus, nama pengguna, kata ganti, ID, dan urutan nomor atau huruf yang dapat di temukan dengan mudah.

The security-savvy community evaluates password strength in terms of "bits," where the higher the bits, the stronger the password. An 80-bit password is more secure than a 30-bit password, and has a complex combination of the aforementioned characters. As a result, an 80-bit password would take years longer to crack than a 30-bit password.

Ideal passwords, however, are a huge inconvenience. How can we be expected to remember 80-bit (12-character) passwords for each of our various Web accounts? That's where many people turn to password managers like LastPass, Dashlane and 1Password.

Creating secure passwords

In his guide to mastering the art of passwords, Dennis O'Reilly suggests creating a system that both allows you to create complex passwords and remember them.

For example, create a phrase like "I hope the Giants will win the World Series in 2016!" Then, take the initials of each word and all numbers and symbols to create your password. So, that phrase would result in this: IhtGwwtWSi2016!

The next option is to use a password generator, which come in the form of offline programs and Web sites. Many password managers like LastPass or Dashlane also have built in password generator tools.

Microsoft offers its own online strength checker, and promises that the form is completely secure. Mac users can use the built-in Password Assistant to check their passwords' security.

Enable two-step-verification

Any time a service like Facebook or Gmail offers "two-step verification," use it. When enabled, signing in will require you to also enter in a code that's sent as a text message to your phone. Meaning, a hacker who isn't in possession of your phone won't be able to sign in, even if they know your password.

You only have to do this once for "recognized" computers and devices. Here's how to set up two-step verification for many popular websites.

Keeping track of secure passwords

If you follow one of the most important commandments of passwords, you know that you absolutely must have a unique password for every service you use. The logic is simple: if you recycle the same password (or a variation of it), and a hacker cracks one account, he or she will be able to access the rest of your accounts.

Obviously, you can't be expected to memorize dozens of complicated, 16-character-long passwords.

This guide thoroughly explores the different options for managing your passwords, including things like storing them on a USB drive, and even writing them down. Although it's ultimately up to you, he presents a strong argument for using the ol' sticky note method.

Using a password manager

Password managers store all of your passwords for you and fill out your log-in forms so that you don't have to do any memorizing. If you want supersecure passwords for your online accounts (which is recommended), but you don't want to memorize them all (also recommended), this is the way to go.

There are many options available, but a few crowd favorites are LastPass, Dashlane and 1Password. All three password managers essentially work the same way. There is a desktop program (or mobile app), which you'll use to manage your passwords. Then, there's a browser extension that automatically logs you into accounts as you browse the Web.

If you haven't yet started using one, let me preemptively say: you're welcome. Password managers are huge headache-savers, and you'll wonder how you ever commanded the Web without one.

The tiny caveat is that you'll still have to memorize one thing: Your master password. This unlocks all your other passwords. Make your master password extra-secure by composing it of at least 12 characters to ensure that it's not vulnerable to any brute-force attacks.LastPass and other password managers like Dashlane and 1Password also have mobile apps, so you can easily access your passwords when you're signing into accounts on your phone or tablet.

It's worth noting, however, that just like any software, password managers are vulnerable to security breaches. In 2011, LastPass experienced a security breach, but users with strong master passwords were not affected.