These days, every app, every website, and every service seems to need you to log in. There are a few reasons for this, including making it easier to keep your selections and creations, and of course to keep more and more information about their customers. With so many user IDs and passwords to remember, it’s no wonder why people are using the same passwords again and again. If you are one of these people, then you should be worried, especially with the increasing number of data breaches and leaks happening almost daily.

Don’t believe me? You can check if any of your user ID and passwords are being spread around the Internet as you are reading this! Just head over to Have I Been Pwned and check your email address! Even without the data breaches and leaks, it is never a good idea to use an easily guessable password or even the same password for different websites. Today, we’re sharing 3 tips to come up with the toughest passwords that will give hackers a challenge but still easy for you to remember!

1. Don't Use Publicly Known Details

This should be common sense, but it is also, sadly, common practice. Many people include significant dates in their passwords. Although this makes it much easier to remember, it also makes it super easy for hackers, especially if this information can be easily obtained (such as through Facebook). Remember, a hacker is always somebody’s friend, and that means your friend could very well be a hacker. Here are some details you SHOULD NOT include in your password:

Birthdays (date or year)

Phone Numbers

IC Numbers

Anniversaries

Phone Unlock Code

2. Have A Password Creating Process

Yes, having a distinct password for every website is going to be hard to remember, but you can make it easier by having a fixed password creating process. This means all your passwords might look similar, but they will differ depending on the website you’re on. So, as long as you keep the process to yourself (and maybe your spouse), it should still be hard to crack even if a hacker got hold of one of the passwords you use.

Here are some examples of password creating processes. Always add your own unique touch (favorite number) to make it even harder!

#Invert the website names + personal number + initials

Facebook password - koobecaf88lkm

Instagram password - margatsni88lkm

#Replace certain letters with numbers and symbols (i - !, o - 0, a - @, E - 3, g - 9, b - 6 etc.)

Youtube password - lkm88y0utu63

Gmail password - lkm889m@!1

3. Use A Password Manager

If all else fails, or everything is just too much work, a password manager is your friend. The simplest form of a password manager would be your Internet browser. Browsers like Google Chrome have built in services to help you create random and long passwords while remembering them for you.

There are also other software, such as LastPass and 1Password, whose sole purpose is to generate passwords based on your requirements and store them safely. All you need is one password to access all of them so make sure you keep that secure!

So remember to never use the same passwords for every website because that is just an open invitation for hackers. Even though it is not 100% hacker proof, making their lives hard enough is usually enough to dissuade them from trying further.