Six tips for a more secure password.

1. Use a variety of numbers and characters.

Helpfully, many sites now tell you how strong your proposed password is when you’re setting up an account. But this service isn’t always available, so make your passwords longer in length and be imaginative, combining letters, numbers, underscores, upper and lower case letters, and special characters like exclamation marks or symbols where possible.

2. Avoid dictionary words: make up your own.

Hackers often run lists of words lifted from the dictionary to try to automatically gain access to accounts. So while ‘parsnip’ might seem like an unusual password, it’s actually just as easy to crack as, well, ‘password’. Try combining words to make unique, cryptic Harry Potter-esque passwords like ‘alligonkey’ or ‘spectagrin’ instead.

3. Get inspiration from a memorable phrase.

For a really secure password, Google suggests combining the first letters of a well-known phrase, the lyrics of a favourite song, or a comic line from a film. For example the line from Forrest Gump ‘Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're gonna get!’ would give you the password LilabocYnkwygg! which a hacker would never think to put together – but it’s instantly memorable to you.

4. Don’t cut corners.

Don’t assume that a short password means it’ll be quicker to get into your account. Whatever password you choose, you’ll type it day in, day out for months – so you’ll get pretty fast at typing it. Longer passwords are more secure as they’d take a hacker longer to crack.

5. Change your password regularly.

This could be as simple as adding a date or month onto the end of your password each time you change it, for example RosyBeeGMAILaccount!jan2012.

6. Never leave your accounts open on shared computers.

Not strictly password-related, but remember to sign out of all your accounts when you use a public computer. We’ve all had our Facebook status updated by friends who’ve nabbed our phones as a joke – it’s known as ‘fraping’. But if a troublemaker finds your account open on a public computer, they might send your friends spam messages, steal your personal information or change your password so you can no longer access your account. So it pays to be vigilant and log out when you leave.

Our parting advice.

If you’re not convinced your password needs to be secure, just think how you’d feel if your email account or Facebook got hacked. Consider the personal information that’s stored in your personal accounts and ask yourself whether you’d be prepared for that to be in the public domain. And if not, have a spring clean – or get a killer password!