Passwords, Logins and Keeping an Account Yours
An account is only as private as the way into it. Length beats cleverness in a password, one password reused spreads a single break across every account, and a second factor stops most of what is left.
What a learner can do afterwards
- Say why a long passphrase is harder to guess than a short password with symbols in it
- Explain what goes wrong when the same password is used on several sites
- Describe what a second factor adds, and name something it does not protect against
1 · Read
A password proves you own your account. It guards mail, games and chats. Attackers guess easy picks like pet names and 123456. They trick you with fake pages.
Length beats tricks. Each new letter grows the guesses a thief must try. A long line of plain words cracks far slower than one short word with marks. Pick long words easy to remember.
Never reuse one password. If one site breaks, thieves walk into your other accounts with the same key. Keep each account on its own key. Never share keys with anyone.
Use a second factor where you can. That means two proofs. Something you know, something you have, like a code on a parent's phone. The third kind is something you are, like a fingerprint or face. Guard both, since tricks can steal codes and an open phone gives both away.
Go long, keep each key apart, and add a second proof.
2 · Watch
Take it off screen
Where it sits
8 questions wait behind this lesson, each with its answer explained. Every answer feeds the sky: stars light as they are learned, and dim when it is time to come back.