This tool can be used to check your password strength. It is loaded once from your server, all the rest happens locally on your computer, by using javascript. No passwords are transmitted through the net. This tool is Free/Libre Open Source Software, so you can download it and also check the code - or ask others to do so, if you want to be sure nothing illicit happens here. For more info about that, and where we took this tool from, take a look at the bottom sections of this page. This version is based on the one provided by passwort.diebin.at.

For some good explanations on how strong passwords work and how to manage them, visit the links to the Electronic Frontier Foundation's pages in the menu above. Remember that there is never 100% security, and that most of the time you have to make a compromise between security and usability. But the more you can secure, the better. And strong passwords are crucial to that. A weak password is not only a threat to your own accounts and data, but also to those of other people (who are e.g. using the same service, or can be traced otherwise through your data).


Test Your Password Minimum Requirements
Password:
  • Minimum 8 characters in length
  • Contains 3/4 of the following items:
    - Uppercase Letters
    - Lowercase Letters
    - Numbers
    - Symbols
Hide:
Score:
0%
 
Complexity:
Too Short
Additions Type Rate Count Bonus
 
 Number of Characters Flat +(n*4)
 
 
 
 Uppercase Letters Cond/Incr +((len-n)*2)
 
 
 
 Lowercase Letters Cond/Incr +((len-n)*2)
 
 
 
 Numbers Cond +(n*4)
 
 
 
 Symbols Flat +(n*6)
 
 
 
 Middle Numbers or Symbols Flat +(n*2)
 
 
 
 Requirements Flat +(n*2)
 
 
Deductions
 
 Letters Only Flat -n
 
 
 
 Numbers Only Flat -n
 
 
 
 Repeat Characters (Case Insensitive) Comp -
 
 
 
 Consecutive Uppercase Letters Flat -(n*2)
 
 
 
 Consecutive Lowercase Letters Flat -(n*2)
 
 
 
 Consecutive Numbers Flat -(n*2)
 
 
 
 Sequential Letters (3+) Flat -(n*3)
 
 
 
 Sequential Numbers (3+) Flat -(n*3)
 
 
 
 Sequential Symbols (3+) Flat -(n*3)
 
 
Legend
  •  
    Exceptional: Exceeds minimum standards. Additional bonuses are applied.
  •  
    Sufficient: Meets minimum standards. Additional bonuses are applied.
  •  
    Warning: Advisory against employing bad practices. Overall score is reduced.
  •  
    Failure: Does not meet the minimum standards. Overall score is reduced.
Quick Footnotes
• Flat: Rates that add/remove in non-changing increments.
• Incr: Rates that add/remove in adjusting increments.
• Cond: Rates that add/remove depending on additional factors.
• Comp: Rates that are too complex to summarize. See source code for details.
• n: Refers to the total number of occurrences.
• len: Refers to the total password length.
• Additional bonus scores are given for increased character variety.
• Final score is a cumulative result of all bonuses minus deductions.
• Final score is capped with a minimum of 0 and a maximum of 100.
• Score and Complexity ratings are not conditional on meeting minimum requirements.
Disclaimer

This application is designed to assess the strength of password strings. The instantaneous visual feedback provides the user a means to improve the strength of their passwords, with a hard focus on breaking the typical bad habits of faulty password formulation. Since no official weighting system exists, we created our own formulas to assess the overall strength of a given password. Please note, that this application does not utilize the typical "days-to-crack" approach for strength determination. We have found that particular system to be severely lacking and unreliable for real-world scenarios. This application is neither perfect nor foolproof, and should only be utilized as a loose guide in determining methods for improving the password creation process.

Software Links

Passwort Meter is a FLOSS product (Free/Libre Open Source Software), so you can download and use as well as modify the source code as you need it. We originally used version 1.03 hosted by Ken Harthun and Ask the Geek and then changed the relevant css and js files to that of version 2.0 found on http://www.passwordmeter.com. We then only made modifications to the index.htm file here, to provide some useful further reading links and an intro text. You can download this package as it is presented on this site: