The biggest security vulnerability for most people is not sophisticated hacking — it is password reuse. When you use the same password across multiple sites, a single data breach at one service gives attackers access to every account you own. Credential stuffing attacks test stolen email-password pairs across thousands of sites automatically, and they succeed at alarming rates because over 60 percent of people reuse passwords across multiple accounts.

A password manager is the gold standard solution, but if you resist using one, the passphrase method creates strong, unique, memorable passwords. Pick four random words — not a phrase from a song or book, but genuinely random words — and string them together with a symbol and number pattern. "Telescope-Mango-42-Blanket-River" is both stronger and more memorable than "P@ssw0rd123!" The length and randomness make it resistant to both brute-force and dictionary attacks.

For creating unique passwords across sites without a manager, add a site-specific modifier to your base passphrase. Take the first and last letter of the site name and work them into your passphrase at consistent positions. Your Amazon password might be "An-Telescope-Mango-42-Blanket" while Netflix becomes "Nx-Telescope-Mango-42-Blanket." Each password is unique, but the pattern is simple enough to reconstruct mentally when you need to log in.

Enable two-factor authentication on every account that offers it, prioritizing email, banking, and social media. Even if someone cracks your password, the second factor — usually a code from an authenticator app — blocks access. Authenticator apps are significantly more secure than SMS codes, which can be intercepted through SIM-swapping attacks. Setting up two-factor authentication takes about two minutes per account and makes you exponentially harder to compromise.