Password Mangement

[Gben 20]

So what is your preferred method to deal with passwords and other identity checkers?

 

Do you have one basic password that use everywhere that doesn't matter?

Do you use a random strong password generator - and how do you keep track of the various methods?

Do you have a secure-password manager eg roboform; identity banks etc

 

Each seem to have good and bad points.

[Nmenth 290]

None of the above. Passwords that are so complex they need to be written down are hardly what I would call secure. Of course, using the same password everywhere is pretty stupid, if you ever give that password to someone for some innocuous location, they suddenly have access to everything you use.

 

My passwords are seemingly random words that have a relation to where they are being used, but I am the only person who understands the significance of them. These are not always "strong", but they are not easily guessed and I almost never forget them even if I don't use them for several years.

[Gben 20]

Out of curiosity how many passwords would you estimate you have memorised? Do you distinctly have different ones for different sites - or do you reuse any for low level usage?

Memorising passwords regardless of their obliqueness is more difficult when sites require you to change them regularly. How do you manage that?

[Nmenth 290]

Probably around 25. Almost all of them are different, the only time they are the same is when the two locations I am using them are related in the same way. For instance, my password (and username) on a certain wiki is the same as the one I use on another forum because the only reason I use those forums is for my work on the wiki.

 

I've never encountered a site that required me to regularly change my password. If I did, I suppose I would use the same password, but add a changing series at the end - by series, I mean a set of numbers or letters that would change consistently in a way I would remember.

[Gben 20]

Changing passwords seem common for financial websites - which is a process that is the bane of my existence... so on top of forums I need to regularly change 10 passwords for information that actually is worth protecting.

[Nyerguds 100]

I'm not going to post that information here! It could help people trying to hack into my stuff!

[Gben 20]

Curses you've seen through my plan - now how am I going to take over the world?!?

 

Complicated passwords that needed to be written down

Simple passwords that used everywhere and easily deduced

Central identity vaults that are ripe for hacking

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.

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all equally unpalatable - I'm just looking for better ideas if anyone has them in a world that requires me to change them regularly.

 

(I should add I physically have 5 different tokens that are required for login information.)

[Nmenth 290]

My system is perhaps a compromise, my passwords are less secure than those you can't possibly remember and would need to record somewhere, but they are not so insecure that they can easily be guessed, even to those who might know me very well (as a bonus, not many people actually do know me very well ). I have never had an account stolen in my life, though, so I do not see any reason to change what I do.

[TheBlackOut 6]

Central identity vaults that are ripe for hacking

 

I use LastPass to keep my passwords for some sites (mostly forums and things that I think if got hacked, no one would find practical). I don't use it for my banking or school accounts.

 

However, I don't think think the ripe for hacking is accurate. It could get hacked, sure, but all the passwords are heavily encrypted. Now some organization like the NSA could crack it, but they probably know your passwords if they wanted them anyway. Individual or small groups? It would take a long time to crack and I'd hope by then LastPass would issue a statement saying, "Yo, check your **** and change your ****."

 

I like LastPass, it's convenient and the random password generator is really handy.

 

Just on the topic, this reminded me a good article about passwords and how they are becoming more easily cracked.