How to Store Your Passwords

Happy World Password Day! This is a holiday that everyone within the sound of my written voice can celebrate; if you're on a computer, you almost positively have at least one password. Or a hundred of them, and therein lies the problem. How do you store all those passwords? Better yet, how do you remember them? Let's review some of the best ways to store the passwords that you use online.

But first, let's talk a little bit about why there is a World Password Day. Cybercrime is huge in the news these days. Rarely a week goes by that we don't learn of another hack by some group of unknown criminals on the computer records of yet another well-known large company, bank, or perhaps worse, government agency.

It is said that there are two groups of people online, those who've been hacked and those who don't yet know they've been hacked. It's hard to imagine how much personal information, often including account numbers and passwords, is in the hands of criminals who have nothing but bad things in mind. Likely they plan to sell all the compromised information they can get their hands on to the highest bidder with no regard at all to how their illegal deeds might adversely affect the average computer user.

While there's little we as individuals can do to stop this widespread criminal behavior, the best thing we can do to keep our own online information safe is to protect access to it by using good, strong passwords and storing them properly.

Care to guess what the two most-used passwords in the world are? At the top of the list is the numeric sequence 123456 while second is the word "password." If you use either of those on any of your online accounts, I have three words for you: No! No! No! It takes mere seconds to create a strong password, one that even the worst bad guy's password-stealing robot can't easily hack. For some simple tips to follow when creating a password, both do's and don't's, visit the World Password Day website. It's a fun and informative site where you'll probably learn a thing or two.

Once you've created your new long, strong passwords, one for each and every account you use, you'll need to figure out how to safely store them. Here are three choices to consider.

1. Hire a manager. The easiest way is to store all of your passwords with the help of a password manager such as the highly-recommended Kaspersky Password Manager (available in both a free and a paid version). This program syncs your passwords across devices, which is very handy. It will also help you develop strong passwords that are hard to crack, always a good thing. Learn more then download the free version or buy the paid version (just $14.99, price subject to change) at the link.

2. Write them down. If you're old fashioned, as I tend to be, you might want to keep track of your passwords yourself by writing them down on paper. Or use a simple Rolodex. The one in the picture above is mine. The alphabetical tabs make it easy to file the cards by site name or URL and it doesn't take much room on your desk top. This is a good solution for a home office, but I wouldn't use it in a public work space where anyone who walks by could take a peek or, worse, grab it and take off with it. Also, it isn't easy to pack in my purse when I travel. That's where the next option comes in.

3.  Use a password journal. I really like this personal password logbook or journal! It's designed specifically for recording internet addresses and their passwords as well as other useful information about your computer, your software, your ISP, your email addresses, and more. The front label is removable, so the contents are stored discretely. The elastic band helps by keeping the book closed until you want to open it. I really like the cover design, too, which is just one of several available for this line of password journals or logbooks. (You'll see them at the link.) While I keep a short list of passwords with me in my purse, it's barely sufficient and not nearly as efficient as this pretty book which right now costs less than $7 (price subject to change).

A word of caution: House fires happen. I know first hand. So if you depend on a Rolodex, sticky notes, or just a simple notebook for storing passwords, make sure you have a backup somewhere (and not on an external hard drive in your home; they burn, too). The Kaspersky system is probably the best choice for storing passwords or, if you still want to do it yourself, just make sure you've set up a file in the cloud somewhere that you can retrieve from anywhere in case of emergency. The price is very reasonable and very worth it when you consider the time it takes to retrieve and/or change every password you have. Again, I know.

So, how do you store your passwords? Do they need updating? How will you celebrate World Password Day? While it officially falls on the first Thursday of May (May 4, 2017), this information is important every day of the year. I hope you'll use it to keep both your data and your passwords safe!

~ Susan
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Posted by Susan Deppner

About the Author

Susan Deppner is a baby boomer, a cancer survivor, and a Southerner who believes in the Golden Rule. She enjoys writing about food, faith, and fitness; health, home, and holidays; people, places, pets, and patriotism, and more. Follow Susan on Twitter, Facebook, and Pinterest.

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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My Computer Bible

I'm sure you are asking yourself if you read that title correctly and the answer is yes!  It says MY COMPUTER BIBLE!  The next question you are asking is " I've never heard of it!" or  "Is it on the Best Sellers List?"

The resounding answer to both of these questions is a big bold  NO!

Now comes the important part, why you should make sure that there is a Computer Bible in your house!  How do I get one and just what the heck is it? And do I really need one?

Please read on and I will explain it all, and I bet it will make a whole bunch of sense to you once you open your eyes and see why you should have this neat tool at your home or work space.

Since the boom of the internet and all the ways in which we use modern technology, one thing has become increasingly difficult for me personally, and I am sure I am not alone.  As a matter of fact, I know that I am not alone, because I have asked many people what their one (most prevalent) peeve is about modern day life......

Inevitably, it will have something to do with computers, social media and the need for passwords to prevent or at least slow down the opportunities to Hack into your space on the World Wide Web. Whether you use social media to converse with friends and family, or whether you use social media to broaden your horizons or work and play together, Your ability to keep yourself safe and your information safe on social media is to have strong passwords to protect your property.  Just as we have locks on our doors to keep out strangers, so we need locks on our 'CYBERSPACE" to keep it safe and secure too.  We don't want to find that our BLOGS, FACEBOOK PAGE, WEBSITE, OR any other place where we work and play can be easily taken over by HACKERS!

This is where the Computer Bible comes in!  My Computer Bible is a beautiful hand bound leather covered blank book where I keep a list of all my passwords.

What is in there?  All of my logins, my accounts and every password to every social media site I use. My Twitter name and password, Facebook names and passwords, my passwords to courses I take on other peoples sites, my cpanel log in and User names.  Anything that I do that requires a Username and Password is recorded in my Computer Bible!  When a password changes, the date and new password are logged in as well.

You may ask, why do this?  Well from experience, I know that as I get older, I don't remember things as well as I used to.  One of my websites was lost, because I could not remember the password and has lost the page where the information was located.  I was not very organized at that time, because I didn't have the need.  I could remember these things and a whole lot more.  Then came that inevitable day, when I could NOT remember and I wasn't organized enough.

Now I know and have been taught by several of my "computer guru friends", that keeping a Computer Bible is a necessity.  And just like a Family Bible that has a special place in your home, so your Computer Bible should have a place that is safe, secure, and accessible should you need it.


You see for me this is very important, because I also use this book to keep all my Affiliate Logins and Passwords, my blogging Passwords, and anything that I do on the web for pleasure or for profit. Because I do a lot of blogging for pleasure, I donate whatever monies I make, to charities that mean something to me. If ever the day should come and I can no longer do this myself, there will be all the information there for someone else to take over should they want to continue doing what I do now. My Computer Bible is not only my #1 reference guide, but it is also all the information anyone could need or want should I no longer be able to continue. Like the family Bible, it has a special place and only a few people know where that is. You don't want all your hard work falling into the hands of someone who really doesn't care as much as you do.

Working in Cyberspace, has it's benefits and it's pitfalls, don't let forgetting passwords and logins be one of yours.  Life is so much easier, with so many less things to remember.  A quick flip through my Computer Bible, lands me in the place that I need to be, and gives me the information that I seek, without sweating bullets or trying hundreds of different passwords to unlock what you remembered you put there yesterday.....or was that last week or last month?????

Note: The author may receive a commission from purchases made using links found in this article. “As an Amazon Associate, Ebay (EPN) and/or Esty (Awin) Affiliate, I (we) earn from qualifying purchases.”

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