How do you create – and remember – secure passwords?

Rules for creating a strong password

• Rule 1: 12 characters

A secure password must be at least 12 characters long.

• Rule 2: numbers, letters, special characters

Your password must have four different types of characters: upper case letters, lower case letters, numbers, punctuation marks and special characters (€, #, etc.).

• Rule 3: choose an anonymous password

Your password must be anonymous: it's very risky to use a password with your date of birth, your dog's name etc., as it would be easy to guess.

• Rule 4: two-factor authentication

Some sites can inform you by email or SMS if someone logs in to your account from a new device. This is a useful option to enable.

• Rule 5: renew your password

On sites that store sensitive data, remember to change your password regularly: every three months is a reasonable barometer.

How do I remember my password?

It is key to use a different password for each account, but it’s too risky to write them down in a text file, in the notes on your smartphone or in the cloud. So how are you supposed to remember them?
You have two options.

• Create a password from a phrase

For example, the phrase “I'm creating a super-secure password! More than 12 characters and 4 different types!” can be broken down to create the password “Icassp!Mt12ca4dt!”

• Use a password manager

Thanks to an encrypted password manager, you only need to remember one password to access all your accounts. How handy!