My friend,
Have you found yourself relying more and more on Slack to connect with your remote team? As invaluable as this platform is, hackers see your messages and files as a goldmine to exploit. By updating your Slack password regularly, you can help keep intruders out.
Let me walk you through exactly how to change your password, optimized for security based on my 10 years as an IT security engineer. I‘ll also share password tips you can use across all your online accounts.
Securing Your Presence in The Remote Work Era
The mass shift to remote work over the past few years drove many teams to adopt online collaboration platforms like Slack with little forethought to privacy. In 2020 alone, Slack reported a 50% increase in usage.
This sudden change left many users unaware of data protection necessities. Outdated or reused passwords put your conversations and company secrets at serious risk of phishing scams and password dumping attacks.
In fact, 81% of hacking attacks last year involved stolen login credentials. And 67% of people admit to repeating passwords across accounts – a major vulnerability.
Once hackers access your Slack workspace, they have the keys to infiltrate:
- Confidential financial data
- Customer records with personal info
- Trade secrets that compromise your company‘s competitive advantage
Updating your password closes easily exploited loopholes. Let‘s examine the straightforward process…
Step 1: Punch Your One-Way Ticket to Slack
First things first, log into your Slack workspace via desktop or mobile app just as you normally would:
Once connected to that lovely virtual office, the real work begins…
Step 2: Access Your Account‘s Control Center
See your profile picture and name in the top right corner? Click on that, then select Account Settings from the dropdown menu:
Consider this your dashboard to manage Slack access.
Step 3: Locate Your Password Vault
On the left menu in Account Settings click the ▶ arrow icon to Expand the Password section:
Think of this as a virtual safe where you can swap out your old key for a shiny new one.
Let‘s do exactly that next…
Step 4: Enter Your New Super Secret Password
First comes the unpleasant part my friend…entering your current Slack password 😖
Type that carefully in the first field.
Now comes the fun part – creating your new ultra-secure password below it!
Let your imagination run wild and be unpredictable as possible. I personally recommend a distinct passphrase with spaces and special characters, like:
Kangar@sHop2tHeBeachBut get creative – just adhere to these criteria we security professionals swear by:
🔐 At least 10 characters
🔐 Numbers, symbols, AND letters
🔐 No dictionary words or personal info
Once satisfied, click bright blue Save button below.
Step 5: Celebrate and Relax!
If you crafted your password properly, Slack will display this cheerful confirmation:
Congratulations my friend! 🎉 With your new credentials, you‘ve achieved expert-level account security.
Now slack away happily knowing your communications are locked up tight!
But take this advice from yours truly – switch out passwords everywhere else and update them every quarter moving forward. Here are some best practices…
Bonus: Level-Up ALL Your Passwords
What if I told you your bank account password right now could likely be cracked in under one day? 😳
Or that even a 10-character password only using lowercase letters takes about 40 minutes to break with hacking software?
Check out this analysis:
| Password Type | Crack Time |
|---|---|
| 7 lower case letters | Instant |
| 8 mixed case letters | Under 1 hour |
| 10 lower case letters | 40 minutes |
| 11 characters, letters + numbers | 2 days |
| Phrase 10+ mixed characters | Over 100 years |
As you can see, adding length, cases, numbers and symbols exponentially strengthens passwords against automated hacking tools.
So while Slack requires just 6 characters, applying these practices more broadly protects ALL your digital assets against compromise.
And we must remain vigilant my friends, as hacking sophistication increases daily. Evolving your passwords over time is critical.
Now Go, Change the World! 💪
…Well, at least change your passwords first my friend! Then you‘ll possess the power to operate securely as we advance human collaboration.
Stay vigilant out there and reset those passwords every 90 days!
Your partner in online security,
Greg
P.S. Have additional password predicaments? Ask me anything in the comments!
