It is known that users like to use the same access data on different systems, because then they only have to remember 1 combination of username and password ("Password Recycling" or also called "Password Reuse").
We strongly advise against this and it is forbidden to do this with TU Graz access data, because we do not know how secure other systems (including TU Graz) are!
With leaked passwords there are also very often so-called "credential stuffing attacks", where automated attempts are made to penetrate other accounts of the persons concerned with these passwords.
Read the article "Dangers of reusing passwords – Know why is it bad and how you can avoid it".
If you want to store (many) passwords (not only in the browser): Why not use our data vault, which also allows secure sharing of information!
If you want to check if your password already appears in password databases, there is a trusted service for that.
Use a password manager with randomly generated passwords or use Passkeys (if offered) – but don't forget that the previously chosen password is still valid, i.e. even if you no longer actively use it, it should still be a secure password!
With many providers there is an option for password reset to answer a (preset) question.
Since the real answers are often easy to figure out through social engineering, you should lie for these answers, you just have to remember how you lied - e. g. you could answer the question about your mother's maiden name with a female character from your favorite novel, or from a movie, etc. - Example: Marjorie Jacqueline "Marge" Simpson's maiden name is Bouvier.
Even more secure than a secure password is the use of a 2FA at least for your webmail accesses. Many providers (Google, Microsoft, web.de, …) now offer login with a 2nd factor.
The most secure method is the use of a hardware token according to the FIDO2 standard, the weakest variant are TANs by SMS, in between there are soft tokens (smartphone apps) like Google Authenticator.
When using 2-factor solutions, however, you must make sure that you do not lock yourself out if your phone number changes (SMS TANs) or if you can no longer access the software token on the smartphone or the hardware token because the smartphone or hardware token is defective or has been stolen.
In case of software token it is recommended to install it e. g. still on a 2nd device, alternatively you should either print out the QR code or the secret by which the random numbers are generated, so that a new device can be initialized again right away, some solutions also offer backups, but this reduces the security, because if someone gets access to this backup, then the 2nd factor is cracked.
