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Ask HN: How do I get my mum to use unique passwords?

9 points by alanbyrne ↗ HN
It took 6 months, but I finally managed to get my mrs to turn on 2 Factor auth for her GMail. I've been whining about the importance of Internet and password security to my friends and colleagues for years, but they just ignore me. My mum uses the same 6 character password for everything, and it is comprised of the name of her dog.

How the heck do I get these people to listen?! The recent news of LinkedIn and potential Last.fm breaches doesn't even cause them to blink.

Does anyone have any tricks or success stories?

10 comments

[ 5.5 ms ] story [ 34.7 ms ] thread
cdvonstinkpot
I find that people don't care until they get bit. Congrats on getting her GMail secured.

I once worked at a small, high profile company in New York City as an IT manager & they wouldn't change their passwords from simple words like 'password1!' no matter what I or the other IT guys would say. We weren't allowed to turn on complexity or expirations. It was nuts.

So good luck.

sp332
I couldn't stand having 2-factor authentication on my Gmail. Any time I don't have access to my phone, I'm locked out of my email? No thanks!
alanbyrne
I barely noticed any difference. My personal laptop, work PC and iPad are trusted devices, so I only need to enter the code every 30 days (or when I clear my cookies). I only really need to enter a code when using a different pc such as a hotel kiosk pc when traveling or at a friends house.
sp332
I had to log in at church every Sunday (I'm on the A/V team and we coordinate via email). Any time my phone was uncharged, or I was trying a flaky ROM on my EVO, or I left my phone at home, I couldn't log in.
Mz
Your mum was a lot safer before you posted clues to her password on a very large forum. If you can still edit, I suggest you delete that info. If not, either beg pg to edit it or go confess to mum that you have compromised her security and due to your idiocy she now really needs to get more savvy.

Just sayin'.

(AKA: There is more to security than unique passwords. And this is a major fail on your part.)

unimpressive
>or go confess to mum that you have compromised her security and due to your idiocy she now really needs to get more savvy.

Bonus points for the fact that if she asks what forum you spilled her login info on, you have to answer "Hacker News.".

alanbyrne
Haha, I appreciate your concern.

I was merely trying to give colorful context to an issue that many people currently face. I haven't a clue what my mothers password is, us IT folk instinctively look away whenever someone is typing in a password (well, if we like them...)

Mz
Have an upvote. Even if you are lying (or perhaps especially if you are lying), it's a great reply.

Have a great day.

tapvt
If she's on a Mac, have her use 1password (from agile bits). It can generate passwords for you, and store them. The browser extensions are pretty seamless, and all you need to remember is your master password.

This is especially viable if she uses the same machine all the time, i.e. her home computer.

maguay
1Password's on Windows too, and works just as good.