Anyone holding an online account should be aware of the security risks associated with such accounts. If you are a Hotmail user, then this tutorial is for you. Computers experts recommend that you change your Hotmail password every so often as it serves as a deterrent to anyone who might want to hack or steal your account. In this tutorial, you will learn how to change Hotmail passwords in a few quick steps as well as steps to create a secure password for your email account.
How to Change Hotmail Passwords
The steps to change Hotmail passwords are pretty straightforward.
Step 1
Log in to your Hotmail account.
Step 2
Click Options and choose More from the menu. You will be taken to the Hotmail Options page. Go to “Manage Your Account”. After clicking Account details, you will be asked for your password again. Enter the password.
Step 3
You will now be in the account information page. Go to “Account Information” and click Change. There you can enter a new password.
How to Recover Forgotten Passwords
Hotmail has three methods for recovering a forgotten password. But they will only work if you configured them during account set up. if you didn’t configure these, you won’t be able to recover your password.
The first option is a secret question that only you can answer. The question may be your mother’s maiden name, your first job, where you were born etc. The second option is an alternate email address. If you got another email address, you can set up Hotmail with that account. Hotmail will transmit your password reset to that email account.
The third option is only for those who have availed of MSN premium services. If you are paying for one of these, you can send them your billing information to prove you are the account owner. This will give you an opportunity to change Hotmail password. If you did not do any of these, the only option left is to create a new email account. But you will not be able to recover any data from the old account.
How to Create a Secure Email Password
If your email address is easy to figure out, hackers will be able to get into it, no matter how often you change it. To create an effective password, it must be easy to remember but hard to guess.
Step 1
Choose a sentence that means something to you. It can be an event, the first words of a foreign language you learned or description of a place.
Step 2
Next, combine segments of words so you end up with another string. Be certain the string is 8 to 10 characters long.
Step 3
You can also join up word endings, beginnings and other sections. Don’t be repetitive or mechanical. For example, do not use all the words’ last characters.
Step 4
You should also capitalize a couple of words at least. To make the password even more difficult to guess, add ampersands, dots, numbers or special characters.
Step 5
For additional complexity, replace letters with numbers that sound like them. For example, replace “for” with 4 or “to” with 2.
Other Information
The longer your password is, the harder it will be to crack. You can also create passwords from random letters or words. You can make a password based on the names of your children for instance. If their names are Jason, Mellissa, Doug and Chris, your password can be “jasmeldoch”. You can then add their ages in between their initials or after the names. You can also add your house number, plate number and so on.
The bottom line is that you have to choose your passwords carefully. It isn’t enough to change Hotmail password. You must also make certain you performed the backup measures in case you forget it.
Author Bio
Charlie is a free lancer writer and content builder of many Technology sites and has written many useful original articles.
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