Why is it such agony to change all my online passwords?

Why is it such agony(ˈagənē) to change all my online passwords?

By Gina Clark

I shriek(SHrēk) at the computer screen, “Why are you doing this to me?!”

I am on a quest(kwest) to reset passwords on 50 websites. Why? Because of advice received from my busy out-of-town son who works in the computer field. On a recent rescue(ˈreskyo͞o) mission(ˈmiSHən), he updates my router’s firmware(ˈfərmˌwer) to foil(foil) Russian(ˈrəSHən) malware(ˈmalˌwe(ə)r). “Pretty tame(tām),” he notes. “Not like the time they disabled your anti-malware program and copied your keystrokes(ˈkēˌstrōk).” Then, his eyebrows(ˈīˌbrou) arch(ärCH) in astonishment(əˈstäniSHmənt). “Mom! You haven’t changed your e-mail password in over four years!”

When I confess(kənˈfes) to using the same one for my bank accounts and the Canada(ˈkanədə) Revenue(ˈrevəˌn(y)o͞o) Agency(ˈājənsē), he reminds me of last year’s hack(hak) which brought down the CRA website. “You need to create new passwords for all those sites. And don’t use the CRA password anywhere else!”

I neglect(niˈglekt) to tell him I’ve been using a 10-year-old password on about 40 other websites. Why so many? Well, online shopping and technology sites account for 15, followed by travel, entertainment, household accounts, health records and logons for courses(kôrs) and newspapers.

In a burst(bərst) of enthusiasm(enˈTHo͞ozēˌazəm) and ill-founded confidence(-fəˌdens,ˈkänfədəns), I begin to correct the error of my ways.

But confusion(kənˈfyo͞oZHən) reigns(rān) when organizations such as Google and Apple span(span) my PC, tablet(ˈtablit) and cell phone. Do I update the password on each device? Why does Apple think I’ve bought a new iPhone and iPad? Why does my browser(ˈbrouzər) keep remembering old passwords? And why do some websites hide(hīd) their Change Password option?

When befuddled(biˈfədl), I opt(äpt) for the “Forgot your User ID?” and “Forgot your password?” options. Sometimes, I choose both and when that fails, I face a barrage(bəˈräZH) of online security(siˈkyo͝oritē
) questions. A few times, I screw(skro͞o) up the answers I created years ago and try to remember: “Did I use an initial(iˈniSHəl) cap on my father’s middle name?” and “Did I describe both the make and the model of my first car?”

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https://www.theglobeandmail.com/life/first-person/article-why-do-so-many-people-turn-their-noses-up-at-e-readers/