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Making strong, easy passwords

A good password is hard for others to guess, but easy for you to use. Here's a simple way to get both.

Three things make a password strong

  1. Long. The U.S. Cybersecurity and Infrastructure Security Agency (CISA) suggests at least 16 characters. Longer is better.
  2. Random. Skip birthdays, pet names, and simple patterns like 12345. They're easy to guess.
  3. Different for each account. If one password leaks, your other accounts stay safer.

An easy way: a passphrase

A passphrase is a short string of words that don't belong together. It's long, so it's strong. It's made of words, so it's easier to remember and type.

Here's the idea, using made-up words. Don't use this one. Make your own.

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  1. Pick four or more everyday words that have nothing to do with each other or with you.
  2. Put them together. Some sites let you use spaces. Others need them joined up.
  3. If a site asks for a number or symbol, add one you'll remember.

The easiest way: let your iPhone remember for you

A password manager makes strong passwords and remembers them for you. Your iPhone has one built in: the Passwords app.

  1. When you make a new account in an app or on a website, your iPhone may offer a password for you.
  2. Tap Use Strong Password.
  3. If your iPhone asks whether to save the password, tap Yes.
  4. Next time you sign in, your iPhone fills it in for you. You can see your saved passwords any time in the Passwords app.

With a password manager, you mostly need to remember one thing: the passcode that unlocks your iPhone.

One more lock: two-step sign-in

Many accounts let you add a second step, like a code sent to your iPhone. Turn it on for email and banking. CISA calls this multifactor authentication.

Keep your codes to yourself

That second-step code is just for you. A real bank or company won't call or text asking you to read it back. If someone asks, it's a scam. See Spot the Scam.

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Where these steps come from

Checked in November 2026 against the official pages below, using the newest iPhone software. Your screen may look a little different, especially on an older iPhone. The official page always has the latest steps.