UPDATED 07:53 EDT / MARCH 04 2014

Twitter glitch prompts password change : Here’s 5 tips to protect you

twitter bird caged cloudAre you a Twitter user?  Have you been locked out of your account?  Did you receive an email telling you to change your password to prevent others from accessing it?

Relax.  Don’t panic.  Your account has not been compromised.

Seriously, your account is safe even if the email you received stated that “your account may have been compromised by a website or service not associated with Twitter,” and Twitter reset your password to prevent anyone else from accessing your account.

According to Twitter, the mass reset was triggered by the company itself, and was not breached.

We unintentionally sent some password reset notices tonight due to a system error,” a Twitter spokesman said in a statement. “We apologize to the affected users for the inconvenience.”

Those who have been locked out of their account can regain access when they change their passwords.  Not many were affected by this mishap and far less than one percent got their passwords reset.

5 tips to protect your Twitter account

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It’s not farfetched to think that Twitter had been compromised, however, as the service has been hit by hackers multiple times last year alone.  So even if Twitter claimed that it wasn’t compromised and you want to keep your account safe, just in case, here are some tips to help you protect your account:

Use strong passwords

Don’t use passwords such as “123456” or “password”, as these are the top two worst passwords of 2013.  Create a password recipe which uses a mix of numbers and letters, and the use of upper and lower case letters.  Don’t use your name, birthdate, social security number, phone number, and any other information that can be obtained from any of your identification cards.  Try using recipes, as in ingredients in your favorite food, plus some numbers that only makes sense to you.

Be inconsistent

Don’t use the same password for different services, especially when you’re also using the same email address for all the services.  You’re just making it easier for hackers to access all your other accounts.  Use different email accounts for your online banking and social networking sites, so even if one of them gets hacked, your other accounts won’t be so vulnerable.

Use two-step authentication

Some services such as Google, Facebook, and Twitter already offer two-step verification, wherein you will need a code sent to your mobile device if you login to your account using an unauthorized devices.  This prevents others from easily logging into your account, and also alerts you if someone is trying to access your account.

Change it up

It’s a good practice to change your password for all your accounts every six months.  This way, your security gets updated, and even if you gave your password to your buddies when you were drunk, you can now prevent them from hijacking your Facebook account and posting embarrassing things about you.

Password lockers

It’s a daunting task use different passwords for all your accounts.  If you’re using at least five online service, I’m pretty you’ll forget your different passwords by tomorrow.  To help you manage your accounts, you can use a password locker.  Password lockers store all your passwords for the different services you use, as well as other sensitive information you need, but can easily forget.  Instead of remembering all your different passwords, all you need is to use your password locker ID to access your accounts.

photo credit: mkhmarketing via photopin cc

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