Password Security: Frequently Asked Questions
1. Why must my password be so complicated?
2. How can I remember a long password like the one you recommend?
3. How do I change my password to a safer password?
1. Why must my password be so complicated?
Answer: The short answer is, to better protect your identity and data from being stolen by hackers.
Example: A person with a desktop PC, will be able to hack (steal) your password this quickly:
- A simple 4 digit (number) password will be hacked (stolen) in .0004 seconds!
- A password with 2 digits and 2 letters will be hacked in .0067 seconds!
- A password with 3 digits and 3 letters (where at one letter is capitalized) will be hacked in 3 minutes
- An 8 character password containing letters (some of which are capitalized), digits, and a symbol (like a comma, period, exclamation point, etc.) will take 85 days to hack.
- A password with 10 characters containing letters (some of which are capitalized), digits, and a symbol (like a comma, period, exclamation point, etc.) will take 17,000 years to hack. We recommend using a 10 character password with the above parameters – helping you protect your data is very important to us! See the next answer on how to remember a 10 character password.
2. How can I remember a long password like the one you recommend?
Answer: You could write it down and store it in a secure place – however, we do not recommend doing that. A better solution is, using a phrase that you will remember, such as:
Example: Take the first letter of each word in a phrase, then add a punctuation mark and then digits. An example would be, “I got married in May, 1984”. Your password would then be, “IgmiM,1984” Remember to have some capitals and no spaces – making sure your password is 10 characters in length. This password would take 17,000 years to hack.
3. How do I change my password to a safer password?
Answer: Follow these simple steps:
- Go to our website (customersbank.com) and click on “select account” under online banking in the upper left part of the website.
- Click on the appropriate login in box,
- On the top center of the new page that opens, click on “User Options”
- Click on “Change Password”
- Read password requirement to better protect your data and identity. Your password must be between 8 and 12 characters long. It must have alt least 1 number, 1 upper case letter, 1 lowercase letter and at least 1 special character (comma, period, explanation mark, etc. – all are listed on the site)
- Type in your current password in the appropriate box, then
- Type in your new (ideally 10 character) password (as described in step 5) in the appropriate box, then
- Type in your new (ideally 10 character) password in the next appropriate box again to ensure it was entered correctly, then
- Click on “Change Password”
- Congratulations – you are now better protected!
