I always enjoy a good hacking story :) Especially when the hacked should've known better!
According to a report on Smoking Gun.com (kind of like the internet version of checkout magazines at grocery stores) someone hacked into an email account of Dorothy Bush (sister of GW Bush)!
Hackers allegedly got some photos and other private emails sent between the Bush family.
Whoops!
Better make sure your passwords are secure!
Good guidelines on creating secure passwords:
“Treat your password like your toothbrush. Don’t let anybody else use it, and get a new one every six months” – Clifford Stoll
- Follow “8 4 Rule”.
- 8 = 8 characters minimum length
- 4 = 1 lower case + 1 upper case + 1 number + 1 special character.
- Unique Characters. Should contain at least 5 unique characters. You already have 4 different character if you’ve followed “8 4 Rule”.
- Use Password Manager. Strong passwords are hard to remember. So, as part of creating a strong password you need a reliable and trustworthy way of remembering the strong password. Using password management tool to store passwords should really become a habit. Anytime you create a password, note it down on a password manager tool, that will encrypt the password and store it safe for you. I recommend Password Dragon (Shameless plug. I’m the developer of this software), a free, easy and secure password manager that works on Windows, Linux and Mac. This can also be launched from the USB drive. There are lot of free password manager tools available, choose the one that best suites your taste and use it.
- Use Passphrase. If you don’t want to use password management tool, Use Passphrase to easily remember the passwords. You can use initials of a song or a phrase that are very familiar to you. for e.g. “Passwords are like underwears, change yours often!” phrase can be converted to a strong password “Prlu,Curs0!”from --- http://www.thegeekstuff.com/2008/06/the-ultimate-guide-for-creating-strong-passwords/
