Have you ever seen a weird mix of letters, numbers, and symbols that made you stop and think, and maybe made you a little confused? Maybe something like zaqrutcadty7? This string could just be a random glitch in a digital document that a cat crawled over. But what if this string is actually a password? It could be an example of the many issues that come with digital security and passwords.
We will be analyzing the string zaqrutcadty7, and its strengths and weaknesses so we can understand the principles of digital security that come with passwords and their security. This will help you understand the importance of security and password change habits, and how to actually keep your information safe.
The Mystery of Zaqrutcadty7
All good passwords give off an impression like the digital string here because of the way it looks. It doesn't appear to follow any of the techniques that are often seen when creating good passwords. Instead, it just looks like a hodge podge of random letters and numbers.
- In the digital world this looks like an example of the many things that can be made with a buzzdle of random characters like here.
- Software Errors: Sometimes, when the software tries to do too much at once, or there is an issue in decoding or processing the data, the screen may show an error of sorts and display some nonsensical characters. The computer may try to analyze the instruction of the user, for example, the text like here could either be a piece of a corrupted file, or a file instruction that was scrambled.
- Human Creativity: It could be an example of a computer user, making a personal identifier or an account name, and using a screen name, as in the example of a virtual community, a joke in an online group community, or a community when a screen name is a joke, or a conspiracy for example vurQzitbn0109 is a joke, or a screen name is a note put together as part of a community.
Now the question is, is this an effective password or not. If we study the password, we will be able to understand the most modern standards of security.
Is zaqrutcadty7 a password worth memorizing?
To answer it lets analyze the most standards of security nowadays.
In order to understand the security of a password, we evaluate the number of characters and how complex they are.
• The LENGTH of the password is the good part.
It is 12 characters long and this is a positive thing. Many modern cyber security guidelines state LENGTH of password a crucial factor in the strength of a password.
However, most online websites still set 8 characters as the minimum and this is not good at all.
Security experts say a minimum of 12 characters is essential, with 16 or more is ideal.
Every character added to your password increases the estimated time and scale of a brute force attack. An increase of character in a password means it is more secure.
The patterns here also appear random. No passwords consist of common words, names or dates. So, in relation to a dictionary attack, these are likely to be safe. A dictionary attack uses a list of common words and phrases, then use simple character substitutions like replacing “a” with “@” to guess passwords.
Bad Predictable Patterns and Public Exposure
“AQRG56^BJSF9^” looks random. But there are many patterns because it's a little subtle. The characters “aqz” are placed right next to one another, meaning there is a strong chance these are being placed in a keyboard patterns, with a possible pseudo random mechanism being placed over top. While not as obvious as “qwerty” or “123456”, these patterns are becoming more common. Breaking these are becoming more and more common, so the changing of the environment to increase the odds of success, with a chance of a deeper neuro-hacking attempt.
The single biggest exposure of the password here is simply public exposure. The more online papers and posts it shows up in for the public to read, the more likely a computer or many computers will scavenge it and add it to lists they keep and hackers will use to gain dictionary attack passwords. Any password that appears online is instant target for hackers to find and use, so there is a serious risk to using the password.
Building a Truly Strong Password
The attempt to analyze zaqrutcadty7 shows the most useful rules for the design of easily remembered items that are very strong in relation to the computer.
Favor Passphrases Over Complexity
The outdated practice of jamming a bunch of special characters into a word and trying to memorize it is nearly useless to you. Instead of worrying about your password being too complex, it could be too short. A strong password is much longer and is a passphrase, such as a combination of random words, such as ‘correct-horse-battery-staple’. The real danger is the shortness of the password. Instead of short and complex passes, make them long with a random combination of multiple words.
Length is the strongest password you can create.
Find Yourself Modern Resources for Password Protection
There’s no way for a human being to memorize each and every password that is different and long and random, and we don’t have to. Modern technology assists us with this.
Embrace Password Managers
A password manager shows digital security at its finest. They are a type of app that is encrypted for your safety and security. They will help generate, save and auto-fill strong, unique passwords for all of your different online accounts. The only password you’ll need to remember is an easy, strong master pass.
Using a password manager solves the biggest challenges of password security:
- It stops password reuse, a practice that jeopardizes all of your accounts if even just one gets hacked.
- It generates random, long, and strong passwords that would take even the best hackers a lifetime to crack.
- It keeps all accounts easy to access, and safe.
Using a password manager keeps track of passwords, and makes sure safe and strong passwords are safe and accessible.
Enable Multi-Factor Authentication (MFA)
Even when passwords are strong, they can still be hacked in a data breach. Multi-Factor Authentication makes passwords a little better. It adds a second thing that has to be true for you to access an account, in addition to your password. You could have:
- A code from an authenticator app on your phone.
- A physical security key.
- A biometric scan like your fingerprint.
If a hacker gets access to just your password, they could still get locked out of your account without the second factor. So, remember to turn on MFA for on any and every account that provides it, especially for email, wires, and socials.
What Can We Learn From Zaqrutcadty7?
It is a special reminder that something that appears safe and random could actually be compromised and unsafe. Endingly, the lesson is: a password, once made public, should never be used again. No matter how clever a password can be.
You don’t need to come up with a ‘perfect password’ for each account. Instead, you can use a password manager to create a long unique phrase for each account. Additionally, be sure to put multi-factor authentication on your most important accounts. If you do these things, you can help keep your digital information safe.
