Answer: up to 0.29 milliseconds. 

Questions: 

• How long is your typical password?
• Do you use the same password for multiple websites? 
• Have you (or do you know anyone who has) been hacked? Do you know how it happened? 

Here's the ready-to-use slides for this Question of the Day for your classroom.

Behind the numbers (Venture Beat):

Hackers crack a seven-character password in up to 0.29 milliseconds. That’s a startling statistic. Using one password for multiple logins sounds tempting; however, recycling passwords only leads to hackers gaining access to multiple accounts through a successful attack. When choosing a password, try using a random word sequence and make it 12 or more characters long. Using a password manager can help you use a different password for each website.

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Check out a new game in the NGPF Arcade, Terms and Conditions, that will teach students how to protect their data. 

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 500+ more questions in the NGPF Question of the Day Library

About the Author

Tim Ranzetta

Tim's saving habits started at seven when a neighbor with a broken hip gave him a dog walking job. Her recovery, which took almost a year, resulted in Tim getting to know the bank tellers quite well (and accumulating a savings account balance of over $300!). His recent entrepreneurial adventures have included driving a shredding truck, analyzing executive compensation packages for Fortune 500 companies and helping families make better college financing decisions. After volunteering in 2010 to create and teach a personal finance program at Eastside College Prep in East Palo Alto, Tim saw firsthand the impact of an engaging and activity-based curriculum, which inspired him to start a new non-profit, Next Gen Personal Finance.

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