How to design a password the hackers can't crack

Courtesy Hacker Dojo

When you use one of these passwords, you make a hacker's job easier. Click through the slideshow for the 5 most common passwords according to SplashData.com

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Jon Xavier: Web Producer- Silicon Valley Business Journal; Email | Twitter | Google

In case you haven't been watching, passwords are getting hacked left and right. Twitter, Apple, Facebook, and yesterday Evernote have all come out saying hackers got access to data on their servers.
Since a lot of you are users of those services, and thus should be resetting your passwords right now, or are users of other services that are likely to be hacked in the future (See: All of them), we thought it would be a good time to talk about how to create a secure online password.
Here are four tips that will help you craft a password strategy that the bad guys (probably) won't be able to break.
Don't use a password
Passwords are, by and large, not a great security paradigm. They're easy to forget, often pretty easy to guess, and a hassle to use. Yet for a long time, they're all we had. Fortunately, modern technology offers us a new way to secure online services: two-factor identification. Two-factor identification basically double checks each login by sending you a text message asking if you're trying to log in.
In some cases, it can even use the machine you're logging in from as one of the authentication factors, rather than a password, which makes things really easy — click a button, answer a text message, and you're in, all without having to remember your mother's maiden name.
Two-factor identification isn't available on all websites yet, but it's becoming more common. If the service you're using offers it, do yourself a favor and make sure it's enabled.
Don't use the same password for everything
Having a hacker gain access to your Spotify account isn't a huge problem — it's annoying that they now know how much you REALLY listen to Carly Rae Jepsen, but it's not the end of the world. But imagine if you used that same password for your email, your bank, your credit cards, and your work account — that's a huge mess.