Password Management

Passwords are secret identities that allow you access to some resource. Passwords were used long before computers were invented. From sentries at the castle gate to soldiers in most any war. Is there anyone who has not heard the phrase, "Halt, who goes there?"

Because your computer contains so much information about you, it should have a sentry at the gate shouting 'Halt, Who goes there?' when it starts up or wakes up. If you do banking online, or belong to a Yahoo Group, or have a computer at your office, you know a little about passwords.

Americans have Social Security cards and driver's licenses to grant them access to certain privileges like working, driving, drawing retirement benefits and, even, obtaining entrance to age-required places like nightclubs. Your Social Security number is your password to many things and, for that reason, should never be your computer password.

Identify theft was the number one consumer complaint in 2001 and has remained high on the list. Of course, most identity theft is not computer-related. Stolen purses or wallets are very high on the list, and there really are people who search through trash.

However, there are a number of computer schemes designed to steal your identity, and we'll give you information about them, as well as information to defeat the enemy. Many times, though, we are our own worst enemy.

Think of your passwords as keys to everything you own.

Helping Thieves

"Auditors could not account for 93% of computers when doing a random check of a central IRS inventory database." (USA Today August 15, 2002) How can anyone not know where 93% of "something" is?!?

IRS employees reported over 6,600 computers lost or stolen. The U. S. Customs Service reported 2,000 missing computers and the Justice Department reported another 400. Government contractor Science Applications International Corporation warned its stockholders that computers stolen from its offices contained their personal information.

Thieves stole a laptop from a California blood bank, putting in jeopardy as many as 100,000 individuals' personal records. Intruders broke into computers at the University of California, Berkeley, and gained access to 1.4 million database records containing identity information. Making the news in a bigger fashion was the loss of 500,000 military medical records when a computer was stolen.

The Worst Case Scenario, however, would be if your information was lost or stolen. The very first thing you should do is password protect your computer so that it asks for a password before it does anything.

The hugely popular Windows XP makes this a very simple task.

Click on the Start button and choose Control Panel in the right-side list.
From Control Panel, select User Accounts.
You will see two options: Change an Account or Choose an Account to Change
Choose your primary or Administrator Account
Add or Change Your Password (see Choosing Passwords Below)
That's all there is to password protecting your computer.
Note: This prevents most people from sitting down at your computer and accessing all your information.

Set Up Separate Accounts for Your Children

Click on the Start button and choose Control Panel in the right-side list.
From Control Panel, select User Accounts.
Under Pick a Task you will see Create a new account.
Select a Name for the new account and click Next
For Account Type choose Limited
The Limited Account cannot see files in any other User Account unless they are in the Shared Folder.
Most software cannot be installed in a Limited Account without the administrator's approval. (This gives you another level of safety for your children.)

Choosing Passwords

NEVER tell anyone your password
NEVER write down your password. If you must write anything down, make it a clue. For instance, let's say you have a dog named Rover, your first child named John who was born on October 18 and a daughter named Mary who was born on March 5. From that, you chose the password roJoma1018. Your clue could be TWO FIRST. TWO indicates that you are using two letters from the names of your dog and children. FIRST indicates that the FIRST letter of your FIRSTborn is capitalized and the numbers are the date the FIRST child was born.
Remember, you will use this password everytime you log onto your computer so it will quickly become second nature to type it.
DO NOT USE john1018 or mary0506 or spring, summer, winter or your birthday or your spouse's name. In other words, don't use obvious stuff. Sadly, most people do.

Now your personal computer is protected. But that's certainly not all the passwords you will need to know. Your Internet Service Provider (ISP) requires a password for you to get Internet access. If you are a member of any groups of organization websites, passwords will be required for those as well.

Let's examine Internet Passwords. And let me tell you about FREE products that can simplify your life and protect your valuable information. Click here for the next article.

Author Larry Jameson is CEO of NetVentures Unlimited, Inc., an Arkansas-based corporation, a member of the International Council of Online Professionals and webmaster for Online Little Rock. Larry holds membership in the International Travel Writers & Publishers Alliance. He is also the author of Is Your Online Business Legal? and numerous articles published on websites around the world.