You have a lot of passwords to keep track of.  Work email. Personal email. Online banking. Facebook. iTunes. eBay. Amazon. And who knows how many other websites. Keeping your passwords simple and easy to remember may sound like a timesaver. However, creating a password that is secure could be a lifesaver. A recent Splash Data article highlighted the top passwords used in 2011.  Even with today’s technology and hackers having access to even more sophisticated tools than ever, many still use known common passwords as a starting point.  Read on for the top ten most commonly used internet passwords in 2011:

• password
• 123456
• 12345678
• qwerty
• abc123
• monkey
• 1234567
• letmein
• trustno1
• dragon

  By the way, this list was compiled from a file containing millions of stole passwords posted online by hackers.   So, now that you realize you shouldn’t have “password” as your password, how do you create a secure password? Use Armstrong’s tips below to guide you towards keeping your personal information safe:

• Make it long. A password should be at least 8 characters long.
• Combine letters, numbers and symbols. The more variety of characters in your password, the harder it is to guess.
• Use words and phrases that are easy for you to remember, but difficult for others to guess.
• Write it down and keep the paper in a secure place.
• Avoid sequences and repeated characters like "12345678"
• Avoid using your username, any part of your name, birthday, social security number or similar information for your loved ones.
• Avoid dictionary words in any language.
• Don't use the same password everywhere.

  For more Armstrong internet support information, check out armstrongonewire.com/support.