Here are some tips for choosing a strong password — one that is difficult to guess.

• Choose a password you'll remember. Something memorable for you (so that you don't have to write it down or leave it in the open), but difficult for others to guess.
• Avoid using a word. Avoid a complete word from a dictionary (English or otherwise) or a name.
• Use at least 7 characters. The more characters your password contains, the harder it is for someone to guess it. A long but simple password can be safer than a short, complex one — and often easier to remember.
• Use a combination of capital and lowercase letters, numbers, and standard symbols (! @ # $ % ^ & *). Your password is case-sensitive, which means that a capital letter A is different from a lowercase a.
• Don't use personal information that someone could easily figure out. Avoid a password based on information easily obtained about you (like your birthday, your child or pet's name, phone number, license plate number, employer, school name, automobile brand, or street name). Don't use a password you already use for another account, such as your bank account PIN.
• Avoid the obvious. Don't make it easy for attackers by repeating a digit or letter (like "111111" or "FFFFFF") or any other common sequence of characters (like "123456"). Stay away from obvious passwords such as "test" or "password." When you change your password, change several characters; don't just append a number like "2" to the end.
• Put a new spin on a familiar phrase. Pick a favorite phrase or lyric for your password. To shorten it, substitute letters with a number or a standard symbol or remove vowels. For example, "fredsboy" can be made into "Fr3d$boy." Shorten "two tickets to paradise" to "2Tickets2Paradiz," or combine "cat" and "dog" into "cAt!Do8."