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Too many passwords! It is a reality of our digital world. It is a pain in the neck (especially as a parent. Worst of all – it can be dangerous!
In this month’s edition of Technology and Your Family, IT Expert Bryant Harrison gives you a chance to figure out what kind your Password Profile is and offer a family-friendly solution that solves the too many passwords problem.
Got a question or a suggestion? Leave it in the comments and Bryant will be sure to cover it in the coming months.
What’s Your Password Profile?
I’ll get us started: Up until recently, I was a very capable category 2 password person. Now I’m working toward
Most people fit into one (or more) of four categories of password confusion.
Category 1: The Many Password Person
(Because lots of passwords is a good thing, right?)
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- Good part = has a different password for every site (Yay! Safe!)
- Bad part = can’t remember them and so you save them on the computer.
Bottom line: When your computer gets hacked, the attackers always look for password files… ZING!… IDENTITY THEFT!!
Category 2: One Password Person
(I am too many places on line for lots of passwords)
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- Good part = can always remember their password… because they can remember one, single thing like a champ! (Me!!)
- Bad part = when that cheesy, hawaiian shirt website (that you love) gets hacked, the hackers get not only your password, but also your email.
Bottom Line: When your email has the same password as everything else, hackers with access to your email can learn a lot about you. They not only see who you bank with, what other services you use, and what websites you visit /buy from … they can use those services pretending to be you. ZING! IDENTITY THEFT!! Me… Image may be NSFW.
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Category 3: Simple Password Person
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- Good part = it is easy to remember your own name! Yay!
- Bad part = simple passwords are super easy to crack with a password generator tool
Bottom Line: They are easy to figure out, especially if you have a pattern ZING! IDENTITY THEFT!!
Category 4: Sticky-Note Password Protection
(because you have too many passwords to remember)
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- Good part = the passwords are NOT digital and so can’t be hacked!
- Bad part = it only takes you 45 minutes to find the password and log into your bank.
Bottom Line: Yeah! No identity theft … but plenty of frustration.
A Better Solution for Too Many Passwords
There are secure solutions that will help you keep track of and protect all your passwords.
With a password keeper program, you have digital access wherever you are and on whatever device. Most importantly, you get STRONG encryption so your info can’t be accessed.
There are a number of great solutions out there, like 1Password among others. The tool of choice for me is called RoboForm. www.roboform.com
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It is super easy to use because you only need ONE really good password. This password “opens the safe” and unlocks access to all your other passwords.
When it unlocks your passwords, it keeps them unlocked until your computer becomes idle. This means that you can log into all of your websites with a single click of the mouse!
Another very cool feature is that RoboForm Everywhere will sync all your passwords to all of your computers or handheld devices. You can access your bank from your iPad as easily as from your laptop.
It also has a family-friendly price. When I wrote this it was $9.99 for a year.
Parents aren’t the only ones with too many passwords. You may find this tool invaluable for helping your kids get in the habit of creating stronger, more secure passwords AND be able to keep better track of their passwords, as well.
This tool saves me so much time and frustration… I hope it helps you as it helped me. Image may be NSFW.
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Meet Bryant
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Bryant Harrison is the founding partner of QuickFix in Charlottesville, VA. He and his partner also own three other IT companies along the US East Coast: BrightFlow, MePush and Avati.
Bryant is quick to laugh and enjoys discussing new ideas and solutions to problems with anyone in need. His dedication to customer satisfaction and achieving “the warm-fuzzies” with clients, as he likes to put it, are the keys to his success. Bryant believes that,
People want someone to help their home or business to be efficient and to grow. They want someone who feels like a collaborator and family member… not an equation.
We have been so successful because in all of our businesses, we hire like-minded people who care for others. It must be about taking care of customers in the same way that you would take care of your family.
Links for Bryant
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Websites
www.quickfixgeek.com – Charlottesville, VA
www.mepush.com – Lewisburg, PA
www.brightflow.net – Charlotte, NC
www.getavati.com – Charlotte, NC (Headquarters)
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Note: The views and opinions are solely those of the author, who is providing the article for informational purposes. Products discussed are presented as professional recommendations by an IT expert. They do not represent endorsement by or approval of the Mom’s Choice Awards.
The post Dealing with too many passwords? You are not alone. appeared first on Blog (Retiring).