Best Practices for keeping your Windows Live ID safe

Your Windows Live ID is essentially your online identity for all of the Windows Live services, Xbox Live, Zune and other third party websites (such as Expedia.com) that utilize Windows Live ID. If you're using Windows Live Hotmail and Windows Live Messenger, your Windows Live ID stores all your contacts and email messages. Your Windows Live ID is definitely something you don't want to have compromised and I've got several pointers - or best practices - in keeping your Windows Live ID safe.

Do not hand out your password! Don't give anyone your password to your Windows Live ID. Handing out your password to anyone is simply asking for trouble. Don't even give out your password to friends or family. I can't imagine a reason why they would need it. Just don't give out your Windows Live ID credentials at all.

Be careful giving your Windows Live credentials on non-Microsoft websites. There are some websites out there that will claim they "require" your Windows Live ID credentials for their service. Some sites use this tactic to gain access to your Windows Live ID.

Fact: Microsoft will only ask for your Windows Live ID credentials on login.live.com and nowhere else!

Use a strong password for your Windows Live ID. Don't use common words or names. Use a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols.

 

Don't use an obvious answer to your secret question. Microsoft provides a list of possible "secret questions" for your account. A secret question is used when you forget your password for your Windows Live ID. Choose a secret question that has an answer that people won't be able to guess (friends, family, etc). The risk you have in using a secret question with an answer your friends might be able to guess is that your friends can try to "hack" your Windows Live ID and have fun with you. Your secret answer must have 5 characters or more and is not case sensitive. Remember to remember your secret answer of course.

Added protection: make your password expire every 72 days. You can login to account.live.com and change your password for your Windows Live ID and configure it to expire every 72 days. I personally don't choose this option rather I change my password every couple weeks on my own.

Neelamadhaba Mahapatro, General Manager for Microsoft's Identity Services (including Windows Live ID) has a post over on the Windows Live Dev Blog explaining Microsoft ongoing to commitment to keeping your Windows Live ID safe and what's being done today to protect Windows Live ID users from phishing.

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Comments

  1. Nasser
    Posted on: May 06, 2008 at 1:54AM  

    Thanks to this warning will be published

  2. rkpatrick
    Posted on: May 06, 2008 at 9:37AM  

    I like the line re: Windows Live ID becoming a managed CardSpace provider:  "we have nothing to announce yet."  Sounds a lot more imminent than "this is not in our plans" or the like.

  3. Arkan
    Posted on: May 08, 2008 at 7:56AM  

    Unfortunately (as there is no suitable one), I use this theme to express my pretensions on Microsoft Office 2007. I am genuine user of Microsoft Office Professional 2007, Microsoft Office SharePoint Designer 2007, Visio 2007, InfoPath 2007, OneNote 2007, though they are all Russian versions, and what I see now. All the templates from http://office.microsoft.com/ru-ru/templates are gone out just before our national celebration – Victory Day. I specially checked nodes of other languages Microsoft Office and they are all operating properly (even Arabic version). I would like to remember that namely our father and grand-fathers defended world somewhen, including fathers and mothers of Bill Gates, Steeve Balmer, Bush and Condiolisa Rice. My answer, why Microsoft behaves so disgustfully prior to our national celebration. Maybe You hate our Russian nation? I tried to clarify this question with our Russian technical support. And there were no chance to obtain clear and distinct answer. Today you switched off templates, tomorrow you will switch off help files, pictures and etc. For what we pay money to your company, if you do not want to give answer when you stop carry on outrageously with ALL RUSSIAN USERS. Please, consider my question asked from behalf of millions of genuine Russian users. If you do not believe, please go to http://office.microsoft.com/ru-ru/templates and see everything described by me with your own eyes.

    Best Regards

    Arkan

  4. Nish Vamadevan
    Posted on: May 08, 2008 at 9:35AM  

    It's just common sense really... Who would give out passwords...

  5. Brandon LeBlanc
    Microsoft
    Posted on: May 09, 2008 at 4:28AM  

    Nish, you'd be surprised at how many users do in fact hand out their passwords to their Windows Live ID's even to friends or family.

    rkpatrick, the Windows Live ID Team is activately working on ways to deploy Windows CardSpace. Just because they have nothing to share now doesn't mean they won't in the very near future.

    Thanks,

    Brandon

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