Passwords form the first line of defense against unauthorized access to confidential data, financial records, and sensitive information online. Attackers know this. They consistently target credentials to gain access to protected systems, making it essential to understand how to secure passwords.
Creating a strong password that balances security and usability is difficult enough for one account. With dozens of accounts, it feels impossible without assistance.
Stronger protection starts with a long password. Ideally, 16 characters or more, it should combine letters, numbers, and symbols. Below are six practices for stronger online protection.
1. Check if credentials have been compromised
A single cracked password, especially if reused, opens the door to multiple accounts containing sensitive information. According to the 2025 Verizon Data Breach Investigations Report, 60% of breaches involved a human element. Not sophisticated technical exploits — credential misuse, phishing, and simple human error.
Data breaches affect many consumers without their knowledge. Have I Been Pwned? checks if an individual's email, phone number, or password has been exposed. The free service compares credentials against username and password combinations from public data breaches and leaked databases.
Leading password managers, such as Bitwarden, integrate with Have I Been Pwned?, allowing account owners to run reports that reveal compromised passwords, usernames, and email addresses. If a password has been exposed, resetting it immediately is the best next step. These tools also securely save new passwords after a reset, keeping credentials strong and accessible.
2. Create long, unpredictable, and secure passwords
Once compromised credentials have been addressed, the next step is building stronger passwords. The strongest passwords are unique, unpredictable, and long. Length is especially critical. Consider these stats from Hive Systems:
A hacker using brute force techniques can crack an 8-character password made up of numbers, upper- and lowercase letters, and symbols in just 39 minutes.
A 16-character password of similar composition would take approximately 1 billion years to crack.
The difference between 39 minutes and 1 billion years comes down to eight additional characters. Length alone can transform a password from easily crackable to virtually unbreakable.
Uppercase letters, numbers, and symbols further strengthen any password. Passphrases offer another effective approach. A passphrase is a random combination of words, often separated by dashes, that forms a unique phrase. For instance, agile-apple-princess-morse is a passphrase with four random words, each containing a different number of characters. Password managers make it easy to use longer passwords or passphrases, since users do not have to remember them themselves.
Although long by design, passphrases are not inherently stronger than passwords and are susceptible to dictionary attacks, where hackers crack a password-protected system using a list of commonly used words and phrases. The risk of such attacks decreases by creating passphrases with more unique separator characters and by adding numbers or other random characters. Individuals should also avoid using personal information such as addresses, pet names, and birthdays in passwords or passphrases.
Bitwarden offers a free password generator that creates strong passwords or random passphrases. Individuals can also use the free password strength tester to evaluate the strength of passwords or passphrases.
3. Embrace two-factor authentication
Two-factor authentication (2FA), also known as two-step login or multifactor authentication, adds a second verification step beyond a username and password. The result: accounts become significantly harder to breach.
Most two-factor setups generate a numeric code that expires quickly, typically within 30 seconds to a few minutes. These time-based one-time password (TOTP) codes have become the most popular 2FA method across consumer, corporate, and government websites.
TOTP codes arrive via SMS text message, email, an authenticator app, or a security key. Some 2FA notification methods are more secure than others. Generally, authenticator apps are more secure than SMS or email notifications because they are not vulnerable to SIM-jacking (phone number stealing) and operate as a completely separate channel. Some authenticators also back up original authentication keys, keeping users protected if they lose a device.
Even the simplest form of 2FA dramatically reduces the risk of unauthorized access.
In addition to 2FA, security questions provide another important layer of account protection. When setting up security questions, individuals should choose questions that only they can answer and ensure their answers are unique and memorable.
Treat security answers like passwords — never share them and avoid using information that others could easily guess or find out.
This helps ensure that even if someone tries to steal an individual’s credentials, they cannot bypass their account security.
4. Stick to encrypted sharing methods
Password sharing improves productivity and promotes collaboration both at home and at work, but the method of sharing matters.
Most email platforms, for example, are not encrypted. Copies of email contents are often saved in multiple places, including the provider's backup servers. Text messages lack end-to-end encryption as well. Writing passwords down or sharing them in unencrypted messages leaves them easily compromised.
Encrypted tools solve this problem. Bitwarden Send, for instance, allows users to transmit information, text, and attachments directly to another person for a specified period, protecting the data with end-to-end encryption. A user transmitting private tax documents to an accountant, for example, benefits from a secure link that is also password-protected for heightened security.
Individuals should also verify the recipient's contact information before sharing passwords to avoid falling victim to scams.
5. Avoid reuse altogether
Despite a year of high-profile cyberattacks, 92% of Bitwarden survey respondents admitted to reusing passwords across multiple sites. Reusing passwords across different accounts significantly increases risk; if one account is compromised, all the other accounts using the same password are vulnerable.
Password reuse persists largely because of password fatigue and the fear of being locked out of online accounts. Remembering dozens of passwords without assistance is difficult, and many people default to the convenience of reusing the same one.
Using a different password for each account is the single most effective way to limit this exposure.
The credential stuffing risk
Reused passwords expose accounts to attacks such as credential stuffing, a form of cyberattack that utilizes a bot to extract leaked credentials from one website and attempt them on thousands of other websites within seconds.
Creating a unique, strong password for each account is the gold standard of password security, and a password manager makes it effortless.
6. Use a password manager
A password manager encrypts a password database with a master password — the only one users need to remember. Beyond secure storage, a password manager enables users to:
Generate random, strong passwords that are difficult to crack
Share passwords securely with controlled access
Sync across all devices for anywhere access
Simplify password changes and resets
Store identity information, credit cards, files, and other sensitive data
Transmit tax documents, mortgage records, and other sensitive information in an encrypted environment
There are many password managers available, both free and paid, so users should select one that best suits their needs. However, experts advise users to be cautious when saving passwords in a browser, especially on a shared computer, as this can pose security risks. Some password managers, like Bitwarden, also integrate passwordless authentication technologies, including Windows Hello, Face ID, Touch ID, and Android biometrics.
What to look for in a password manager
When searching for the right password manager, it is essential to understand how security is built into the infrastructure. The provider should utilize end-to-end encryption when transmitting data, ensuring all sensitive data is encrypted before it leaves a device. With this approach, not even the provider itself can access the information.
Resistance to known exploits and security vulnerabilities is equally important. A trusted provider conducts regular third-party audits and adheres to security and compliance frameworks such as GDPR, SOC 2, and HIPAA.
Tip: To stay protected against the latest threats, individuals should enable automatic software updates for their password manager and devices.
Get started with Bitwarden
A password manager empowers users to secure passwords without sacrificing convenience. Strong, unique passwords generated instantly. No memorization required. To stay protected against the latest threats, users should enable automatic software updates for their password manager and devices.
Bitwarden was recently ranked #1 among password managers in the SoftwareReviews data quadrant report. Millions of individuals, families, teams, and enterprises worldwide rely on Bitwarden to securely manage and share passwords. Get started with a basic free Bitwarden account today.