"Make your password strong!"

Cybercrime offenses cause millions in damage every year. In order to raise awareness among Internet users and make it more difficult for the perpetrators, the Minden-Lübbecke district police authority and the local consumer advice center are taking part in the "Make your password strong" prevention campaign run by the NRW State Office of Criminal Investigation.

Whether you use online banking, like to shop online or are registered with other online services: Insecure passwords always represent a major security risk and are an easy gateway for cyber attacks. Number sequences such as 1234567 or 111111 are unfortunately among the most frequently used password codes. Cyber criminals also know that you can remember such number sequences better than irregular numbers and letters. This makes it easy for them to hack your access data.

Because the perpetrators only want one thing by misusing data:

• to relieve you of your money and
• to misuse your good name for fraudulent purposes or in any other damaging way

This is why the new campaign for more security in the use of digital devices has been launched.

It is not always easy to find a good and therefore strong password. On the one hand, it should not be so easy for others to guess, and on the other hand, it should be easy to remember. A mnemonic can help with this. Think of a sentence that you can remember well and to which you have personal connections. If you use a permanently strong, secure password, you can actively increase your own personal security in virtual space.

How to create your own personal, secure password

• Use your imagination and create a sentence that only you know, but that you can easily remember.
• Then just add the first letter of each word and the punctuation marks from this sentence. Your individual password is ready.