Importance of Cybersecurity and How to Set Strong Passwords

Given our ever-increasing dependence on digital technologies and the internet for our day-to-day operations, it only follows that cybersecurity is becoming more crucial as well. In this article, our IT solutions experts will discuss the significance of cybersecurity solutions and provide tips on setting stronger secure passwords.

What Is Cybersecurity and What Solutions Can We Implement to Keep Our Systems Safe?

Cybersecurity is a collective term for the practices implemented and technologies (software and hardware) used to protect computers, networks, and digital information from unauthorized access, use, disclosure, disruption, modification, or destruction.

Examples of practices implemented to improve cybersecurity are: a) setting strong passwords that are not susceptible to brute force attacks, b) using different passwords for different accounts (to limit damage in case of a breach), and c) not storing passwords in obvious places (basic password protection). Familiarizing individuals that use computer systems to recognize signs (social engineering techniques used to carry out a fraud) of cyberattacks such as Phishing and Spoofed Websites is also an important aspect of cybersecurity training.

On the other hand, cybersecurity solutions implemented through existing technologies involve the use of multi-factor authentication, machine learning to detect suspicious activity, data encryption, and password strength assessment, among others. The IT solutions mentioned above are just some of the cybersecurity measures integrated into the Microsoft Office 365 suite of applications and programs.

Cybersecurity Tips: How to Set a Strong Password

Here are some tips from our Cybersecurity solutions experts on how you can set a strong password.

• Use a long password – A longer password is harder to crack than a short one, you should opt to elect a password that is at least 12 characters long.
• Use a mix of characters – Mixing uppercase and lowercase letters with numbers and special characters will make your password more resistant to a brute force attack. This, in conjunction with the first tip, is the core of most cybersecurity measures around password protection. 
• Avoid using personal information – Do not use personal information such as names, addresses, or birthdays as passwords as this information are easy to obtain by doing a google search of your name.
• Avoid using common words and phrases – The usual suspects for these common words are ‘password’, ‘123456’, ‘qwerty’, ‘secret’ and other variations of these. These words are the first ones a hacker will attempt when doing a brute force attack. A quick google search of ‘passwords to avoid’ will result in a list of passwords that you should not use.
• Use different passwords for different accounts – This doesn’t make your password stronger but it prevents multiple security breaches should your one password become cracked.
• Use a password manager - The complicated thing with passwords is that they should be complex enough to resist brute force attacks and yet can still be easily remembered by its users. To remedy this conundrum,  consider using a password manager to generate and store strong, unique passwords for all of your accounts.

Make Sure Your Cybersecurity Solutions Are in Tip-Top Shape

The cybersecurity measures we have discussed above are just some broad strokes of cybersecurity solutions that you can easily implement for a degree of protection. However, personalized corporate cybersecurity solutions are still best to ensure your IT systems are fully protected. When it comes to IT solutions that are bespoke, easy to use, and responsive to your business’ needs, you should work with a trusted IT solutions company such as BHT solutions. Call us now and schedule a free 1-hour consultation. Help us make technology work for you.