Password Security

We liked the guidance in the blog from Graham Cluley of Sophos on choosing passwords – see here.  It is timely advice, given that a Sophos survey found that 33% of us use the same password for all our website accounts.

Alternatively, how about using a short two word phrase – convert the second word into numbers using your phone’s  keypad. 

Using a sentence or phrase as a memory aid is quite common.  Users of Mark IV manifoil combination locks (standard locks in government and military secure environments) often use sentences together with letter tables (similar to keypads on mobile phones).  It’s much easier to remember a sentence than a whole series of combinations!

Google Street View

I’m normally one of the first to get on my soapbox about breaches of the Data Protection Act/Directive, but with Google Street View I seem to be missing the point.

Why is everyone so upset by a collection of crowd scenes? If I told you I featured on 10 street views for the UK, and that each view where I feature gives away some personal information about me, could you find them? Of course not. In fact, I couldn’t even tell you if I appear on any of them.

Let’s get proper enforcement of what laws we have about personal data sorted out before we get precious about so-called invasions of privacy by applications such as Street View.

Andrew (first posted as an answer on LinkedIn)