Today is the day to #LayerUp by making sure you have strong passwords protecting your information.

Here’s how:

Never give your password to anyone. If you lose it, it can always be changed. But there is never a good reason to share your password with anyone. You will never get into trouble for NOT giving out a password. Criminals can easily use what’s called social engineering to get passwords and other account information from staff. This could lead to a serious breach. Giving out your password is not necessary.

Create strong passwords. At a minimum, passwords should have at least eight characters, with a mix of uppercase letters, lowercase letter, numbers, and symbols. The longer the password, the better. 12 or more characters is best. Most systems will take phrases or full sentences as well to make them easier to remember and more secure.

Don’t use the same password for every account. You don’t want someone who figures out your Facebook password to also have access to your bank account.

Turn on Multi-Factor authentication where possible. Many of the major websites such as Google, Facebook, Yahoo, financial institutions, etc. now allow you set up an extra layer of protection. It might be a text to your cell phone or a phone call to confirm you are who you say you are.

Do not use your City email account for personal accounts and NEVER use your City Windows password on other systems.

Are you using one of the top 10 most common passwords?
1. 123456
 2. 123456789
 3. qwerty
 4. 12345678
 5. 111111
 6. 1234567890
 7. 1234567
 8. password
 9. 123123
 10. 987654321