Password Grooming: Keeping Your Record Clean

Passwords are an indisputably important part of the modern digital age. But passwords aren’t something we can create and then forget about.

In fact, our own lifestyle, fashion, and grooming habits have a lot in common with a solid password maintenance policy. SynchroNet highlights four points where we can see these two shared areas converge. If we keep these points in mind we can ensure our passwords are safe and secure.

The first point is to pick our passwords in a similar way to how a teenager selects a prom dress. A prom dress needs to be unique and stand out from the crowd. In the same way, we should ensure our passwords aren’t something that a random individual might guess. Our passwords should always be unique. And just as we’d never want to reuse a prom dress we’d never want to reuse our old passwords.

The second point to keep in mind is that we need to take care of our passwords in the same way we take care of our teeth. We typically brush our teeth on a regular schedule in order to keep a bright and healthy smile. We should also take care of our passwords on a regular schedule.

It’s typically a good idea to update passwords every six months. Part of this simply entails using secure tools. This can include a secure password vault and mobile or browser-based extensions to that system.

Part of the schedule also entails taking note of sites or services requiring a password for the two weeks leading up to the scheduled maintenance day. We simply need to note where we’re using passwords.

It’s also a good idea to note which services we’re using most often. When the time comes to update our passwords we should begin with the most commonly used services and then make our way through the rest.

The third rule involves styling your passwords like you’d style your hair. We can use a lot of different items to ensure our hair looks great. Likewise, we can employ multiple style guides to ensure our passwords are secure. This includes using simple words, spaces, special characters, numbers, and case changes when creating passwords.

Finally, the fourth rule is to take care of your passwords like you take care of your nails. When we trim our nails we cut away the excess. And in the same way, we should remove unused or compromised accounts.

An easy way to accomplish this is by going to haveibeenpwned.com and entering your email address. This will show any compromised accounts. You can then go through those sites and disable the account or change your password.