It wasn’t that long ago that I vented in this column about passwords. The problem is only getting worse and my temper is getting shorter.
Amazon! I’m talking to you. And iTunes! You’re moving up the list as well.
Nobody is more concerned than I am about security. Identity theft gets worse everyday and companies, especially on the phone, just don’t get it.
First, I will show you my driver’s license and credit card, but asking me to turn them over to you, is asking me to dump my bank account out on the street.  In fact, I’ve been told that only a law enforcement officer can ask for your license.  People who ask to hold it are violating some kind of state law, because the license belongs to the state, not you.
The credit card can be run through a device that gives people unwanted access to your account. The 3-digit number on the back was a great identity check, except everybody knows about it now and it no longer serves a purpose.
In the meantime, the password thing is costing these online companies money and they just don’t get it. I recently broke my own promise and tried to download an audiobook from Amazon. They denied my password. They never let you correct the matter. The machine only lets you change it. So what is it now and what did it used to be? I lost track. I changed the password and immediately made my purchase. Except it wouldn’t accept the new one. I called and got angry. (Shame on me. I know I can never win when I’m angry.) I finally got the thing to work only to find that the book, a new Tom Clancy tome, sold in three parts and would take three hours to download.
OK, so I played along. Then I needed a password to open the downloaded file. As you might have guessed—none of the passwords I tried would work. The audiobook file still sits in my computer, unopened.
The good news was that after several hours online I got them to refund my money. From now on, when I want an audiobook for my iPod, I’ll check one out of the Public Library. I carry cards for several Inland Empire libraries. You should too.
Now comes a report from ABC news about what they call the 25 worst passwords on the Internet. They got the info from a Los Gatos California software company called SplashData.
As you can see, some of these are just patterns that are formed on the keyboard. I was personally surprised to see that birthdays and anniversaries did not make the list. Also, why superman and not batman or spiderman? I would guess that 007 were just too simple for a password. In any event, SplashData says, quite simply, don’t be predictable.
They do recommend a couple of other suggestions.
Long passwords are better passwords. They suggest eight characters or more. You might want to try two words connected by an underscore.
Logically, another suggestion is to not use one password for everything. I wish I could do that, but as they point out, if someone hacks my Facebook account, they can get into my bank account.
They also suggest an online password manager. I am dubious. If it takes one password to get into the manager, they again can get into my bank account.
Would you believe that they also advised a scrap of paper in my wallet. Now you may have gotten ahead of me here. What happens when I lose the wallet?
As it happens SplashData sells an app that helps you manage your passwords.
What we come down to is a conflict between your personal security and ease of use for online purchases. Like golf clubs, a lot of computers are getting beaten up because of the users’ frustration. The cowardly part of all of this is that there are few convenient phone numbers to call for help. You usually just get a screen message saying that it can’t accept what you’ve submitted and that’s too bad.
I wonder if Aladdin had this much trouble a thousand years ago with “Open Sesame?”

The worst passwords to use, in order, are:
1. password 2. 123456 3. 12345678
4. qwerty 5. abc123 6. monkey
7. 1234567 8.letmein 9. trustno1
10. dragon 11. baseball 12. 111111
13. iloveyou 14. master 15.sunshine
16. Ashley 17. Bailey 18. Passw0rd
19. Shadow 20. 123123 21. 654321
22. superman 23. qazwsx 24. Michael
25. Football