Your passwords are like the keys to your office, your client files, your private information and your your bank accounts. For these “keys” to fall into criminal hands would be a disaster for you and your business.

That is why keeping your password secure is as important as creating one that is difficult to decipher.

Here are two ways to help keep your login details safe:

1. Test your password
You can determine whether your password is easy to crack through the website How Secure Is My Password (www.howsecureismypassword.net), according to Roger Miranda, president of Evident IT, an information technology consulting company in Winnipeg.

Simply type in your password and the site will tell you how quickly a hacker could decipher your chosen code.

Miranda has used the site to check his own password. He found that his basic password without the use of any symbols could possibly be breached in 15 hours. Once he adds a symbol, that time goes up to 275 days.

The site is free to use and asks only for the password you are considering, which will not be transferred to other websites.

2. Use a password-management program
Miranda says memorizing your passwords is the best way to keep them safe. But if you find remembering the many passwords needed for a normal online existence daunting, a password-management program is another option.

LastPass (www.lastpass.com) is a web-based program that promises to store your password information securely. It requires the creation of one strong master password that you would use to access the program; the program stores and encrypts the rest of your passwords. Lastpass features include auto-filling passwords for the appropriate sites and generating complex passwords for new accounts.

LastPass has a free version that can be downloaded onto computers using Apple, Windows or Linux operating systems. A premium version, which includes access to the program’s mobile apps, is available for a small annual fee. Applications are available for Android, BlackBerry and Windows smartphones, as well as iPhone and iPad.

KeePass (www.keepass.info) is a device-based program that stores passwords in an encrypted database located on your desktop or a USB stick. As with LastPass, the KeePass database is accessible through a master password and also helps you create passwords. Desktop programs are available for Apple, Windows and Linux computers at no charge.

The main difference between KeePass and Lastpass is that the KeePass database is not stored in the “cloud.” An intruder would need physical access to your computer or physical file storage such as a USB stick in order to try accessing your KeePass passwords.

KeyPass also supplies a variety of applications for mobile devices using Apple, Android and BlackBerry systems. These apps, which range in price, can be used to sync your desktop database with your mobile device. Just remember that syncing two systems will require you to store your information in a cloud-based service, such as Dropbox.

This is the second part in a two-part series on password security.

Click here for part one.