The security thing is not really anything new. If you want to keep everyone else out of your stuff, you have to endure a little inconvenience to make sure you put your stuff away properly.

Half a century ago, a "manager" in my group got a new file cabinet with a big combination dial on the front of the top drawer, but they didn't tell him the combination for using it. There were a couple of strips of duct tape on the dial to keep it from being turned when it was delivered.

Fortunately it was unlocked when he asked for assistance, so I just pulled the back plate off the lock so I could see the wheels, and dialed what lined all the notches up and gave him the combination.

UNFORTUNATELY these cabinets also had a "plug lock" that required a key. Nobody had a key to one of those (at that office) and his, as was the practice, had sufficient masking tape wrapped around the plug to prevent it being pushed in to lock everything. Of course on my way back to my cubbyhole I heard the ominous "clunk" indicating that the $!#@^ deleted ... had ripped the tape off and pushed the plug in "to see what that would do."

A paper clip bent to a proper hook made an easy job of "picking" that lock (fortunately the lock was clean inside) after which I replaced the tape. It wasn't necessary to say anything when I left to go back to my own desk. When I got there the "boss" was still standing there with his mouth open watching me and wondering what had happened.

Now, an insecure password, no matter how complex, is like putting a bigger padlock on the tool shed. A bigger padlock is just easier to hit, and sometimes makes people think there's something more valuable inside. A 3 pound hammer will open any padlock if you can get get to them to hit them. A much smaller hammer will work on most, if you hit them a couple of times.

It's an unfortunate fact that you have to know quite a bit about how someone might try to get to you in order to do much of anything on your own that might help to make it more difficult for them to do it.

Listen to the experts, and follow the best advice you can find.

John