Apple has updated their MobileMe News “blog” with a helpful tip for added security, and for when that security necessitates the need for a helpful little reminder.
First up, Apple reminds everyone that even good passwords, left static for too long, grow old and stale.
One simple way to increase the security of your life online is to change your account password periodically.
You can change your MobileMe password via the Account icon, and Apple provides some suggestions for picking good passwords. (Here’s ours — use something long and with lots of numbers and symbols thrown in. Pseudo-random is the best. Use GRC.com to generate it, or use a good password manager (I use 1Password on the Mac, my PC friends recommend RoboForm) to both generate and store lots of logins).
Next up is what to do if you forget your MobileMe password, and it’s fairly standard stuff, involving a secret question:
Should you ever forget your MobileMe password, go to the MobileMe login page at me.com and click the Forgot password link. You’ll be taken to a page and given the option of resetting your password by answering a secret question to establish your identity.
Pro tip: If you’re even a semi-public figure, or just “don’t trust anyone” make up a fake history, with fake maiden names, pet names, etc. or anyone who knows your background can hack your account as easily as they did Salma Hayak’s.
One of our favorite apps on the Mac — and the iPhone — is on sale for today only:
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The 1Password iPhone App is, of course, free, but the Mac app is usually $39 bucks, so this is almost a full $20 off. Of course, some people will complain it’s not “free” as well, but then these same people typically don’t work for free either, as trying to feed a family doesn’t work for “free”. Support great software and great developers will be here to support us with even more great apps.
Typically among the very first apps I install when I’m setting up a system, flawless password management and syncing make this not only a “just works” but a “must have”. (Plus, their UI and general graphic design work is awesome, and that hooks me every time!)
Get it before the stroke of midnight!
figure 1: the most important feature is highlighted
There’s another password manager on the scene, and this one looks to be the most secure version that I’ve seen. 1Password is a mac-only application, so there unfortunately isn’t a password manager I could securely recommend to Windows iPhone users yet. The application has a little button that sends an encrypted bookmarklet to Safari that you can then sync to your iPhone. You can open the bookmarklet and view your passwords with a master password that you assign within 1Password.
The bit that gives 1Password the nod above others at the moment is that the bookmarklet is encrypted with good cryptography. The blowfish cipher is a well-respected cipher by Bruce Schneier, one of the most respected cryptologists out there, and 1Password uses blowfish’s maximum key length of 448 bits within the bookmarklet. So, if you’re looking to store your passwords with heavy-duty security, 1Password might be worth your look.
