How to check your password strength

Cape Town – Hackers are actively trying to discover your password, which is often the lifeline to your online account

Security company Kaspersky Lab has developed a tool to let you know how secure your password may be.

The online tool works by checking to see the level of complexity of your password and how long hackers would take to break it.

A simple “1234” as a password is broken in less than a second, the tool reports.

However, a more complicated password that includes upper and lower case letters, digits and symbols could take more than 10 000 centuries.

In a recent survey, Kaspersky revealed that 83% of South Africans were most concerned by the possibility of accounts being hacked.

However, only 26% believed that they could be targeted by cyber criminals.

“Attackers often rely on the element of surprise, when users least expect it. That’s why Kaspersky Lab recommends internet users to expand their knowledge of current internet threats, to be alert and make sure their security solutions are primed and ready,” said Peter Aleshkin, head of consumer marketing in emerging markets for Kaspersky Lab.

Check the strength of your password here.

The company advises that you do not use the same password for multiple accounts.

Is your password difficult to remember? Let us know

follow destined_eagle on twitter