We are living in a day and age where passwords are so important to protect not only you, but also your personal information. Are you using your pet's name for all your passwords? Even for your work passwords? Sorry to say, but that isn't the safest way to protect your information.

In 2022, we are learning just how easy it for hackers to guess our passwords without even thinking. By using common passwords, such as 12345 or abc123, we are getting hacked more than ever. Even if we think using a birthday, anniversary, a pet's name, or even a family member's name is safe... think again. Passwords we think are strong could take a hacker less than 1 second to figure out.

Intel created World Password Day to address the serious need for stronger passwords. It is really simple to create and store strong passwords these days, Apple has Keychain Access. There are also online resources for creating hacker-proof passwords, click here to learn more.

So, when is World Password Day? Intel designated the first Thursday of May for such an important issue, this year it is May 5th.

When little kids say, "what's the password?" when playing and they don't want you to be part of the group, this started with secret organizations like the Masons who would ask for the password before letting you in the door. Over time this word, password, has come to take on many forms. The main use for a password is to allow us to access on the internet, i.e., email, monthly subscriptions, and bank accounts.

World Password Day is a reminder of the importance of strong passwords, and a friendly reminder to change our passwords every so often. Having even one password get compromised can set off a chain reaction of having all our passwords getting compromised. Sadly, this is happening all too often, part of the reason World Password Day was created and first observed in 2013.