You should never forget your iPhone’s passcode. But what you shouldn’t do is use your birthday as an access code.
Why you should never use your birthday as an access code
When you set the passcode, your iPhone already warns you about codes that are too easy to guess. These are, for example, consecutive digits and numbers that appear in certain places on the screen. That’s why many iPhone users choose a birthday or another important date in their lives as their passcode (because it fits into a six-digit code).
Such an important date as a password seems like the perfect combination of security and convenience. At the same time, a six-digit string significantly increases security against brute force attacks compared to a four-digit code. With a brute force attack, passwords are tried until one works.
Not as safe as you think
The American forensic company Grayshift which makes devices to crack iPhones, iPads and Android devices for the police, shows that these birthdates are also very vulnerable to brute force attacks.
Grayshift simply analyzes the SMS and Message chats and generates possible passcodes from this data. The chance of a successful brute force attack increases enormously, making your password cracked faster.
That’s why we recommend absolutely not using a birthday or important family date as an access code. If your chats are read by a device or another person, they are far too easy to guess. In addition, a birthday (or another known date) is quite easy to find out anyway.
So it is smarter to use as random a combination of numbers (and letters) as possible. Furthermore, the longer the passcode and the more different numbers you use, the more secure your code is.
Do you really want to set a very strong password for your iPhone? Then set an alphanumeric code. You can read how to do that in the article below.
Read more: How to set a strong alphanumeric password on your iPhone
Do you always want to be up to date with the latest Apple news? Then please sign up for our newsletter. Additionally, download the free iphoned app and keep an eye on our website. Then you’ll never miss an Apple news again!
-
5G on or off: do you want longer battery life or more speed?
-
iPhone tips: how to get more out of Apple’s Weather app
-
This is what the color of the Airpods light says and it’s more than you think
-
Download songs in Apple Music: this is how you listen to music offline
-
New on Netflix and Apple TV Plus: check out our tips for April 2024