Protect Your Pins and Passwords

Don’t make it easy as 4, 3, 2, 1 Protect your PINs and passwords
 
PINs and passwords are common forms of identity verification. They are used to access financial institutions, email accounts and shopping websites. Creating strong PINs and passwords helps you to keep your personal information secure. Here are some tips about selecting strong PINs or passwords and how to keep them safe.
 
 
Strong PINs and passwords
 
 
Don’t:
 
Use identical digits such as 1111 or consecutive numbers such as 4321. Use personal information such as your birth date, family member’s birth date, phone numbers, pet names, your name or your address. Use the same PIN or password for multiple sites or purposes

Do:

Use a combination of upper case and lower case, numbers and special characters. Make your PINs longer than four digits where possible, and your passwords longer than eight letters and digits where possible. Longer PINs and passwords are more difficult to breach. Consider using mnemonic passwords, for example, the first letter of each word in a memorable phrase, for example, The quick brown fox jumped over the lazy dog would be Tqbfjotld.
 
 
Keeping your PINs and passwords safe
 
Don’t:
 
Respond to an email purporting to be from your bank. Your financial institution will never ask for your security details like your internet banking password or PIN via email. Share personal information with people you do not know and trust. Access personal information, such as internet banking, from public or unsecured computers such as internet cafes.

Do:

Look for the padlock icon and https:// in the URL or web address to make sure you are on a secure site (an unsecured web address starts with http://) when conducting online transactions. ?Keep any physical records of PINs or passwords that you have recorded in a secure place. A piece of paper in your wallet or near your computer is not secure.