How to Create a Hack-Proof Password You Can Actually Remember

NEW CYBERSECURITY BREACHES SEEM TO BE AN almost weekly occurrence lately and more than 14 million Americans a year become victims of identity theft, according to the latest estimates. Yet consumers continue to leave themselves vulnerable to fraudsters eager to nab their personal data. The culprit: the highly predictable passwords, PINs and other log-ins they use for their online accounts.

That’s an increasingly costly mistake. More fraud victims are now on the hook for at least a portion of the expenses that data thieves ring up in their name and the amount they’re paying is rising too. All told, 3.3 million victims bore some financial liability for fraud perpetrated on their accounts in 2018 (the latest year that data is available)—that’s nearly three times the number who paid out of pocket in 2016. Meanwhile, the amount individuals paid more than doubled to $1.7 billion over the same period, according to a study last year by Javelin Strategy & Research.

Sure, both Visa and MasterCard have zero-liability policies that say you won’t be held responsible for unauthorized card charges as long as you report the fraud promptly