Why Strong Passwords Matter (and Why Passphrases Are Easier)

01/ 05/ 2026

Passwords are still one of the most common ways we protect accounts—email, banking, social media, developer tools, and everything in between. The problem is that attackers don’t “hack” passwords the way Hollywood shows it. They guess. They reuse leaked credentials. They run automated attacks at scale. And weak or reused passwords make that job easy.

What actually makes a password strong?

A strong password is primarily about length and unpredictability. Each additional character increases the search space an attacker must try, which quickly makes brute-force guessing impractical. Modern guidance also emphasizes avoiding commonly used or compromised passwords and focusing on secrets that are hard to guess.

Practical takeaway:
If you have to memorize a password, you’re usually better off choosing a long secret than a short, “complex-looking” one.

Why passphrases are a great fit for humans

A passphrase is a password made from multiple words—often unrelated—sometimes with separators (like numbers or symbols). The magic is that passphrases tend to be long by nature, which boosts strength, while still being readable and memorable.

Compare these two examples:

T9!x4Q@ (short and easy to mistype)
Big3sigma%prime^ (longer and easier to read)

How to build a strong passphrase (without making it painful)

Go long: aim for 14+ characters (and more for high-value accounts).
Use uncommon combinations: avoid famous quotes, lyrics, or predictable patterns.
Add variety: include at least one number and one symbol to meet many site requirements.
Make it unique per site: reuse is where breaches multiply.
Use Multi-factor authentication: strong passwords + MFA is better than either alone.

Why readability matters (security is a people problem, too)

If a password is too hard to type or remember, people do predictable things: reuse it, write it down, simplify it, or store it insecurely. Passphrases reduce that friction. They’re easier to read, easier to type, and easier to keep unique—without sacrificing strength.

Try it: TronKits Passphrase Generator

I built a small utility to generate passphrases using a consistent pattern (adjective → noun → verb → adverb), with digits/symbols between words and at the end—so you get strong, readable results that still meet common complexity rules.