Use different passwords for different accounts!

When you read ‘500,000 Zoom accounts hacked’ in the media, it doesn’t necessarily mean that Zoom was as leaky as a sieve. Criminals simply took a database that was available on the internet with billions of email addresses and passwords and tried it out on the Zoom servers. It turned out that 500,000 users used the same password on Zoom as they did on another website that had been hacked. That is why it is important to choose a different, unique and strong password for each website. And you should set a new password on a regular basis, such as once a year.

Here are some tips:

• Keep work and private life separate. Never use your UM email address as a username for private use of websites; use a private email address instead.
• Think of a mnemonic device, a memory aid, with which you can come up with strong passwords for every new website.
• Forgot your password? That’s no problem with most websites. Just request a reset using your private email address.
• Too many passwords to remember? Use a password manager. You can view trusted information in Dutch here or search for more information in English, for instance, here.
• Check if your password has been hacked on Have I been Pwned and reset your password on all other websites where you still use that same password.

Cartoon: Ruben L. Oppenheimer