Tips for Choosing Secure Passwords

The Internet makes it possible to check our bank balances at midnight or talk to a friend across the globe via Twitter. But the explosion in high-tech tools also means we need a passel of passwords -- and strong ones at that, because hackers get more sophisticated all the time.

If you're still logging in to all your accounts with your kid's name or your birthday as a password, CJ Romberger and Michael Fertik have some alternatives that will help keep your accounts safer.

Romberger is the founder and co-owner of Wildwood Interactive, an Internet, database and software company. She's known as Gadget Girl and writes a column of the same name for austinwoman magazine.

Michael Fertik is the CEO of reputationdefender.com, a Silicon Valley-based business that offers services to help protect your reputation and privacy online.

-- The longer your password, the more secure it is. Eight to 10 characters is a good range, Romberger says.

-- If a word is in the dictionary, it shouldn't be part of your password, Fertik and Romberger agree. Hackers can run programs that repeatedly try to log in to your account using words from the dictionary.

-- Fertik and Romberger also say to avoid the names of your spouse, child or pet in your passwords. With many of us revealing so many details of our lives on social media, these details are easier than ever for a hacker to figure out.

The availability of this information also makes it easier for hackers to guess your security question and reset your e-mail password.

-- Your user name shouldn't also be part of your password, Romberger says, and Fertik points out that you should also avoid your nicknames or variations on your own name, such as adding an extra letter ("Michaell").

-- So how can you create a secure password that's still memorable?...