Consumer tips for World Password Day

Almost everything has its own day these days and May 4th is -- along with all the Star Wars puns -- World Password Day.

Cyber security firm Kaspersky Lab is keen to help people avoid common password problems and is calling for a standardization of password criteria.

Tips for creating a good password include making it at least 15 characters long; combining letters, numbers and symbols; not using personal details that could be gleaned from your social media profiles; and making passwords unique for every account.

If it's too hard to remember all of your passwords, use a password manager. If you're worried about whether the software is secure, Kaspersky recommends using separate, manually created, passwords for accounts containing sensitive personal or financial data where compromise could have severe consequences.

Another recommendation is not to use the save password feature in your browser. It may be convenient but it's not as secure as a dedicated password manager. Finally, there’s no need to change your pasword regularly, but you should be sure do so if you know, or suspect, that your account has been compromised.

"This World Password Day, Kaspersky Lab is calling out for standardisation in password criteria and frequency of change," says David Emm, principal security researcher at Kaspersky Lab. "With each business requiring different password standards -- some may require lower case letters, some may require numbers, and some vendors even limit the length -- consumers are understandably getting confused and overwhelmed by the constantly changing specifications. Businesses must therefore standardise password criteria in order to make the security process as streamlined and easy to manage as possible for consumers."

You can find out more about good password practice, including the #LayerUp pledge to encourage the use of two-factor authentication, on the World Password Day website.

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