Let's Talk About Passwords
Last October, 23andMe disclosed that hackers had accessed 6.9 million of their users' data. The hackers managed to do this by first accessing 14,000 accounts using previously-leaked login information. In other words, re-used passwords are what let the hackers through the front door of their system. (The fact that accessing 14,000 accounts lead to 6.9 million compromised accounts is another aspect to the story I won't get into here.)
You may have noticed that we have an obnoxiously long password requirement when you sign up for Elsie. We know it's annoying, but longer passwords are stronger passwords. Using strong passwords that are difficult to guess help protect against "brute force" attacks, but having unique passwords for all your logins is just as important. The truth is, most security measures are little use against a hacker that already has your login credentials. If you use the same password for an online game as you do for your state logins, a breech in one system may one day lead to a breech in the other.
Here are some things you can do to reduce your risk:
Make sure you're using long, unique passwords every time you register for an online account.
Use a password manager to keep track of your logins (we like 1password, but there are many out there). For your license-related logins, you can use the password manager in Elsie to make sure you have access to those at both work and home.
Change your passwords on a regular basis, and especially when there's been a possible breech of something you use.
When was the last time you checked your passwords?
