How to Change Twitter Password and How to Enhance Security

Twitter is a wonderful social media site that has more than 645 million users. The site provides an excellent opportunity for individuals, artists and businesses to keep in touch with friends, family members and customers. More than 135,000 people sign up for new Twitter accounts each day, which means that its popularity is constantly growing. However, complications always come with great technology. Password hackers and malicious software engineers still try to violate the foundations of Twitter as they do on many other sites. For that reason, Twitter users need to implement some important Twitter security strategies. The following contains some advice on protecting personal information on the Twitter website.

Tweet Privacy

First, a new Twitter user will have the option to protect his or her tweets from random people on the Internet. This privacy feature gives the user control over who gets to view his or her most intimate details. The way to activate this feature is by clicking on the “account” icon and then selecting “security and privacy” on the left side of the page. The user will see an unchecked box for “protect my tweets.” This security feature will cut down on strangers obtaining details about a Twitter user’s whereabouts and activities.

Limiting Discover-ability

A Twitter user may want to limit the number of people who can find him or her. A new Twitter profile is automatically set to allow other people to find a Twitter profile by phone number or email address. Such visibility may cause a problem for a person who is trying to keep a low profile. To deactivate those features, the user just needs to uncheck the boxes. Two boxes are there. One box says, “allow others to find me by email address,” and the other box says, “allow others to find me by phone number.”

Keeping Location Private

A Twitter account has the ability to store a person’s location and post that information if he or she so desires. However, some people do not wish to have their locations publicized for privacy reasons. That feature is in the privacy settings, and it is called “Tweet Location.” To disable the feature, the user has to uncheck the box that says, “add a location to my tweets” if it is checked. Keeping location information private can cut down on instances of Internet stalking.

Declining the Photo Tagging Feature

The photo-tagging feature is a feature that allows people to add a user’s handle to a photo and show the world that the user was in the photo. Turning off the photo-tagging feature could be a good way for a user to protect himself or herself. A cautious user can easily shut off photo tagging by clicking “do not allow anyone to tag me in photos.”

Login Verification

Login verification is a new Twitter security feature that a person can use to ensure that no unauthorized person accesses his or her account. The feature will send a secret passcode to the account holder’s cell phone. The person will not be able to log in to Twitter unless he or she uses the secret password. Login verification will stop an intruder even if that person obtained the Twitter password using fraudulent methods. It provides an extra layer of security that should give a Twitter user peace of mind.

Choosing an Initial Password

Choosing a difficult initial Twitter password is a crucial security step that will provide an account with maximum protection. A Twitter password should be at least eight characters long, and it cannot be more than 15 characters long. A new Twitter user will want to avoid using easy-to-guess passwords such as ones that contain part of his or her name, location or birth date. A Twitter user may not use the word Twitter in the password either.

The best strategy for choosing a good password is trying to make it as difficult as possible without it being too hard to remember. A Twitter user can use numbers and letters. Therefore, the person will want to create a complex combination that can resist phishing software and hackers. The person can place the numbers anywhere in the password line. A good idea for a secure Twitter password is one that has four different numbers and four different letters. The numbers should be scattered instead of close together. This procedure will make it complicated for a person to guess his or her way into the password. Additionally, it will confuse special software that hackers use to crack passwords.

How Many Times Should You Change Twitter Password?

Many websites advise their users to change their passwords once every three months. Some websites even force their users to change their passwords every three months. A Twitter user should consider changing their Twitter password any time that he or she feels that the account information has been compromised. This may be after a lengthy period in which the person stayed logged into the account. It could be shortly after a person has been exposed to computer viruses. The individual may want to perform a Twitter password change after a significant other has accessed the account. Users who want to change their passwords as a protective measure can do such once a month for maximum protection. The process is quite simple, and it can save a user a heap of problems.

How to Change Twitter Password From Inside the Account

There are two ways that a person can change a Twitter password. The first way is to perform a Twitter change password from inside the account. This means that the person already knows his or her former password. The way to change the Twitter password using this method is to first log in to the Twitter account. Next, the person will want to click on the account icon and then look to the left side of the screen. There, the user will see a link for “password.” The user will click that and then look to the right of the page. A password reset widget will appear to the right. The person will first enter his or her current password. Next, the user will want to type in a good password to replace the existing one. Twitter will make the user enter the new password twice so that the system is certain of the changes. Finally, the user will click “save changes” and the process will be finished.

How to Perform Twitter Password Recovery

A Twitter password recovery is a procedure that a person will want to perform if he or she genuinely forgets the password. First, the individual will navigate to Twitter’s main page, which is located at https://www.twitter.com. A blue “forgot password” link will be on the right side of the page in the sign-in box. The person will want to click the “forgot password” link to initiate the recovery process. The first step the person will have to take is identifying his or her account. The individual will have to enter a User ID, an email address, or a phone number. The Twitter tool will use that information to find the person’s account. The person will then have to look at the account that Twitter finds and verify whether it is his or her account. The system will show profile pictures and it will show part of the email address that the person supplied when he or she first joined Twitter.

Twitter will ask the member if he or she would like to send a password reset link to the address on file. If the person agrees that the email information is correct, then the next step is clicking continue. After the person clicks continue, Twitter will send a password reset link to the individual’s email address. At that point, the person will want to log into his or her personal account and follow the link to reset the password.

Changing a Twitter Handle

A person may want to change a Twitter handle for many reasons. One reason may be that the person simply thought of an interesting new name. Another reason may involve attempts to tighten security. Once the person changes the Twitter handle, his or her Twitter URL will be different. Therefore, the person will want to change the information on websites that reflect the old handle. A user can change a Twitter handle by going to the account settings and then typing in the new Twitter handle over the other one. The change will be saved when the person clicks “save changes.”

Recovering a Twitter Handle

Recovering a lost Twitter handle is easy. The user will visit the Twitter home page and click “forgot password.” Next, the person will want to click “I don’t have any of this information” to notify Twitter that he or she does not know the handle, phone number or email address associated with the account. The person will be directed to a help page for further assistance.

Users can spend a few minutes ensuring that their Twitter accounts are secure and free of mischief at all times. They will want to change their Twitter password as frequently as possible to maximize security.