Passphrases to avoid

Tip: Choose Save as PDF in the print dialog to download. Use A4 paper size.

Passphrases to avoid

Name:
Date:
Class:
A

Quick Questions

Shade in the A or B circle for each question.

1. Which passphrase is safer to use?
A purple-teapot-jumps-quietly
B ava-nguyen-2014
2. Is your pet's name a good thing to put in your passphrase?
A Yes, only I know my pet's name
B No, people who know you might guess it
3. Which passphrase should you avoid?
A qwertyuiop
B mango-rocket-pillow-sings
4. Is the first line of a famous song a good passphrase?
A Yes, it is long so it is always safe
B No, famous lyrics are easy to guess
5. Which one is a guessable passphrase?
A MyBirthday12March
B frog-lamp-ocean-biscuit
B

Match the Pairs

Draw a line connecting each item on the left to its match on the right.

Left columnRight column
1MaxTheDog2014 AA guessable passphrase because it uses a pet's name and a birth year that others could find out
2qwertyuiop BA birthday is a personal detail that others can find out or guess, so it should not be in a passphrase.
3A famous song lyric or saying is too well known to be a safe passphrase Ctwinkle twinkle little star
4Your school name and your own name are details others can find out, so do not use them DA keyboard pattern passphrase that is very easy to guess because it follows the keys in a row
5My passphrase is my birthday: 12March2014 EThis uses a keyboard pattern and a simple number run, which are some of the first things guessers try.
6Passphrase: 1234qwerty FEmmaSunnyvalePrimary
C

Definitions

guessable passphrase
D

Fill in the Blanks

Complete each line of code by filling in the missing parts.

1.
IF passphrase = ______ THEN REJECT passphrase
2.
IF passphrase CONTAINS ________ THEN REJECT passphrase
3.
IF passphrase ________ pet_name THEN REJECT passphrase
4.
IF __________ = song_lyric THEN REJECT passphrase
5.
IF passphrase IS _________ THEN REJECT passphrase
E

Spot the Error

Shade in the letter of the line that contains an error.

Question 1
A name = "Ava"
B phrase = "Ava likes pizza"
C if name in phrase:
D print("Safe!")
E else:
F print("Not guessable")
Question 2
A bad = ["qwerty", "123456"]
B phrase = input("Phrase: "
C if phrase in bad:
D print("Too guessable")
Question 3
A birthday = 12 May 2014
B phrase = "teal moose kite jam"
C if birthday in phrase:
D print("Change it")
Question 4
A lyric = "twinkle twinkle star"
B phrase = "twinkle twinkle star"
C if phrase = lyric:
D print("Song lyric: avoid")
Question 5
A pattern = "qwerty"
B phrase = "qwerty123"
C if pattern in phrase
D print("Keyboard pattern")

Answer Key

Passphrases to avoid
Section A: Quick Questions
Q1
A — purple-teapot-jumps-quietly
Q2
B — No, people who know you might guess it
Q3
A — qwertyuiop
Q4
B — No, famous lyrics are easy to guess
Q5
A — MyBirthday12March
Section B: Match the Pairs
Q1
MaxTheDog2014 → A guessable passphrase because it uses a pet's name and a birth year that others could find out
Q2
qwertyuiop → A keyboard pattern passphrase that is very easy to guess because it follows the keys in a row
Q3
A famous song lyric or saying is too well known to be a safe passphrase → twinkle twinkle little star
Q4
Your school name and your own name are details others can find out, so do not use them → EmmaSunnyvalePrimary
Q5
My passphrase is my birthday: 12March2014 → A birthday is a personal detail that others can find out or guess, so it should not be in a passphrase.
Q6
Passphrase: 1234qwerty → This uses a keyboard pattern and a simple number run, which are some of the first things guessers try.
Section C: Definitions
Q1
guessable passphrase — A passphrase others can find out or guess, such as your name, birthday, pet, school, a song lyric, a saying or qwerty. Never use one for an account.
Section D: Fill in the Blanks
Q1
IF passphrase = qwerty THEN REJECT passphrase
Q2
IF passphrase CONTAINS birthday THEN REJECT passphrase
Q3
IF passphrase CONTAINS pet_name THEN REJECT passphrase
Q4
IF passphrase = song_lyric THEN REJECT passphrase
Q5
IF passphrase IS guessable THEN REJECT passphrase
Section E: Spot the Error
Q1
D — The phrase contains the name Ava, so it is guessable. The message should warn the student, for example print("Guessable!"), not say it is safe.
Q2
B — The input( bracket is never closed. It needs a closing bracket: phrase = input("Phrase: ").
Q3
A — Text must be inside quotes. It should be birthday = "12 May 2014". Birthdays are also a detail to avoid in a passphrase.
Q4
C — A single = stores a value. To compare two values, use ==: if phrase == lyric. Song lyrics are easy to guess, so avoid them.
Q5
C — An if line must end with a colon. It should be if pattern in phrase: so the keyboard pattern check works.