Security and Managing Passwords

Quality Passwords

Two ways to create easy to remember but difficult to decode passwords:

1. Think of a a visual scene and is sentence that is easy to remember - "4 Red apples on a glass tables". The password is the first letters of each word: 4rAoaGT and you have a rule to capitalise the nouns. Or I like my 4 cups of coffee a day = Ilm4cCad
2. Use a Password Management system like iCloud Keychain, Dashlane or LastPass and many others.

Two Step Verification

This is a valuable addition to security. Banks, Apple, Google and other sites that require good security use this process. It requires you to register your mobile phone with their site so that whenever a change in login is detected, like a change in password, you are sent a text message with a unique number that you then entered on the web site to authenticate that you are the owner of the account. Some banks and Google get you to install an 'Authenicator' app on your phone which received the code number instead of using text. 

Password Managers

Keychain is Apple's password management system and is linked to your Apple account, which is a good reason to have a good password for your Apple ID and for it to be one that you memorise because it is needed quite regularly. 

If Keychain is switched on in iCloud Settings, login information from Safari and passwords is encrypted and saved in iCloud and available from all linked devices. Credit card information can be similarly stored. You can see your Keychain information and edit it in Security/Safari/Passwords and AutoFill. Under AutoFill you give authority to enter this sensitive information. Your fingerprint or passcode is required - a good reason to be careful in letting other people know your passcode. 

Dashlane is one of the high reputation password managers. The basic version is free and for an annual subscription it will sync all your devices with a secure storage of passwords and secure notes. This has a number of benefits. 

1. You can readily use high complexity passwords (which Dashlane will generate) and you don't have to worry about remembering, and 
2. it will quickly insert these into online sites as you approve. You have one master password which only you know. If you forget that, you have to start all over again! 
3. Once you enter your personal information like name, address, phone number into Dashlane you can auto-enter these when you are using online forms to order and open accounts. Saves a lot of tedious typing. 

This is somewhat better than relying on Keychain which is an Apple-only service, and independent password managers are probably more secure, because they are quite independent of other uses of Apple ID, and allow you to store all kinds of secure notes.