Paul Stenhouse: Password security 101

Paul Stenhouse joins the show to talk password security 101.

Use a password manager: A password manager can generate, store, and fill in your passwords for you. This can help you create and remember strong, unique passwords for each account.

  
Use strong passwords: Passwords should be at least 12 characters long and include symbols, numbers and a mix of uppercase and lowercase letters. Avoid dictionary words, personal data, sequential numbers, repeated numbers, and keyboard patterns. 
Tip: try a "pass phrase" of multiple words or numbers strung together" 

 
Use different passwords for different accounts: Using the same password for multiple accounts makes your data more vulnerable. If a hacker guesses your password for one account, they can try it on all of your accounts.  

 
Use multi-factor authentication: It's annoying, but multi-factor authentication adds layers of protection so even if someone has your password, they still need that second factor of authentication too. 

Bonus points.. try adding a.css-j9qmi7{display:-webkit-box;display:-webkit-flex;display:-ms-flexbox;display:flex;-webkit-flex-direction:row;-ms-flex-direction:row;flex-direction:row;font-weight:700;margin-bottom:1rem;margin-top:2.8rem;width:100%;-webkit-box-pack:start;-ms-flex-pack:start;-webkit-justify-content:start;justify-content:start;padding-left:5rem;}@media only screen and (max-width: 599px){.css-j9qmi7{padding-left:0;-webkit-box-pack:center;-ms-flex-pack:center;-webkit-justify-content:center;justify-content:center;}}.css-j9qmi7 svg{fill:#27292D;}.css-j9qmi7 .eagfbvw0{-webkit-align-items:center;-webkit-box-align:center;-ms-flex-align:center;align-items:center;color:#27292D;}

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:07):
You're listening to the Saturday Morning with Jack Team podcast
from News.

Speaker 2 (00:11):
Talks at b News Talks and there's time to talk technology.
And joining me now is Paul stin House. Good morning,
Good morning. Where are you? You are in New York
as it's snowing? Is this snow on the ground.

Speaker 3 (00:26):
It was trying to snow earlier today, actually, but no,
it's just a little gray and cold.

Speaker 1 (00:32):
Okay.

Speaker 2 (00:32):
I was really hoping you were going to set this
beautiful sort of white Christmas cut five for me. But okay,
but a slash on a bit of gray.

Speaker 3 (00:39):
Great.

Speaker 2 (00:40):
Hey, yeah, you're talking about something today, which it's funny
you bring this up because I was sort of talking
to a girlfriend about about this during the week and
she'd almost been scammed and realized that probably the sensible
thing to do a bit of change all her passwords.
And then we can't look at each other, and we thought,
it's a bit of you forday, you don't don't.

Speaker 3 (00:56):
Don't tell me it's password one two three or one
two three four five six wirty one two three.

Speaker 2 (01:03):
Is the other page he speak. But you know, people
pick one thing and then they kind of roll with it.
It's across the board, don't we It's what we do.
So I like the fact you're going to kind of
give us our password security one oh one lecture today
because this is it's not a sixty New Year's resolution,
but it is something we should all think about. I
reckon heading into the new years making sure our passings
are as tight as possible.

Speaker 3 (01:22):
It is, and so I've been doing the show now
for seven years, and every year the end of the year,
I try to implore people to take some time and
change their passwords. I think it took Jack about four
years to get on board, so you know you've got
a few years left franch Escaut, but he does now
sing the praises of the password manager. Excuse me, and

(01:43):
a password manager is fantastic. Why because you don't have
to think anymore. You only have to remember one password
to get into your password manager, and then it knows
all of your passwords. And I can confidently say that
there are only sort of two passwords I actually now
know by heart. I could not tell you my banking password,

(02:04):
I could not tell you my email passwords. I couldn't
tell you passwords for all sorts of things, because that
all of my password manager they are very strong, they
are very unique. They are absolute random letters and characters,
and I strongly recommend a password manager. If you're not
going to go down the password password manager road, you

(02:26):
think that's a little scary, try something called a pass phrase,
and that's where you kind of string multiple words or
numbers together and you can just come up with something
completely random like green jacket, people car, you know, whatever
you want to do. And something like that, though, is
better than password one two three, okay. So, or you

(02:49):
know your name or your kid's names or your dog's
name or something along those lines.

Speaker 2 (02:53):
If you use a password manager and it gives you
this wonderful, unique, long, strong password, doesn't remember it for you?
Is every time you open that app on your phone
or something. You know, how you know how your passwords remember? Yes, well,
I don't know if you're supposed to remember me, but
that's what I do. So it's just there for you.
Don't have to think twice? Does it take it? It's just

(03:15):
the password manager, correct.

Speaker 3 (03:18):
And so if you're using something like one password, which
I use, it actually sinks across all of your devices, okay,
And so when you click in the password box, it
actually tries to auto fill with your username and password,
and it's it's so easy, Like it really is so easy.
It took me, now, if it took Jack, you know,
took badgering Jack four years once a year. It took
me badgering my parents for close to a decade almost

(03:41):
weekly that they needed to get on board. And they
have now and they finally trust the password manager. And
they now also don't know sort of the password to
their banking apps and things, which I think is good.

Speaker 2 (03:53):
Okay, so has been it has one password or any
other password manager like temporary gone down or there's even
an issue, because I could imagine that would be you know,
if you don't know any of the passwords problematic.

Speaker 3 (04:07):
That would be bad, That would be bad, no something.
So one password is the one I use, super reputable.
They've been great. They don't know anything about your data.
It's all encrypted. It's it's a pretty good service. Look,
the one thing you have to know with your password
manager is that password to get in right, And so
people are like, oh, what if I forget that, It's
okay actually to write that password down. I know that

(04:29):
sounds crazy, but if you keep that password written down,
keep it in a safe and secure place. Someone has
to really be going to look for that password. I
would much rather have someone like have to find my
password written down in a secret place than be using
the same passwords across all of my different digital services,

(04:49):
because if one person gets into one of those, they
can get into all of them, which yes, is still
the case if they found your past word written down.
But if you store that away in a really safe spot,
I think you're into a much better security posture.

Speaker 2 (05:00):
It's like when you see someone who's written the password
on a poster and stuck it on the computer.

Speaker 3 (05:05):
Hey, look, do you know what. It's actually not that bad.
I know that sounds crazy, it's not that bad if
the passwords a good password.

Speaker 2 (05:13):
Okay, all right, So if you don't use the password
and blow your mind now, So if you don't use
the password manager, though, you've got to make sure you've
got different passwords for different accounts. You strong passwords, put
you know, take advantage of the multi factor authenticate authenticication authentication.

Speaker 3 (05:34):
Can I say one thing though, here's here's my one
piece of advice. If you update, I kind of think
my passwords and tears. So if you update one part
of today, make it your banking password, because that one
really matters. And make sure your email passwords strong because
that's tied to probably everything. And then if you end
up using the same password on you know, you're random
Woolworth shopping and your whatever, Okay, that's maybe okay, but

(05:56):
don't use it the same one as your bank. Paul.

Speaker 2 (05:58):
I'm going to I'm going to make your day. The
only two have changed this my email and my bank.
I've done that. There we go, Good Merry Christmas, Paul.
Thanks so much for your time today. Love you to
talk to you. Oh, there we go. Normally I get
normally I do get a lecture about things like that,
but I can actually sort of cruise towards the end
of the are feeling quite good about that.

Speaker 1 (06:18):
For more from Saturday Morning with Jack Tame, listen live
to News Talks ed B from nine am Saturday, or
follow the podcast on iHeartRadio.