Most people probably wouldn't leave the key to their house hanging from a hook on the front door. Yet these same people might be just as careless with the password that unlocks their personal information on a Web site like WebMD. Choosing a password that's secure and maintaining its secrecy are two of the most important steps you can take in safeguarding your privacy.

First, let's start with choosing a good password. To help keep your personal information safe, passwords on WebMD must be 8 to 16 characters (letter and/or numbers) long and not contain any spaces. Passwords are case sensitive, meaning that capital letters and lowercase letters are treated as different characters.

You should choose a password that is well known to you but not obvious to others. The name of your pet or significant other, your birthday, your Zodiac sign are not good choices. Neither are the words "secret" or "password," since lots of people use these.

The best passwords are long (at least 8 characters), include a mix of upper- and lower-case characters, and contain a combination of letters, numbers and symbols. Some examples:

Cops&Robbers36

Love_is_GRAND

Roll*Wave*Roll

Once you've chosen a good password, don't share it with others. Memorize your password. If you must write it down, don't keep it out in the open (e.g. on a sticky note attached to your computer monitor or written on the bottom of the keyboard. Keep it in a safe place, away from your computer. Ideally, you would change your password every six (6) months.

Don't share your password with others. A person who finds out your password can not only see your personal information, he or she can also change your preferences and settings on the WebMD site.

Last Updated: November 22, 2011

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