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AI & technology Work & ambitions

How to protect your accounts from hackers

Secure the accounts that matter most, starting with your email.

A course on everyday account security. It covers how accounts are usually broken into, why your email account matters most, long unique passwords and password managers, turning on 2-step verification, recognising phishing, and what to do if an account is taken over.

Download Cadence on the App Store
Start with three things you can do today

Type this when Cadence asks what you want to learn

I use the same few passwords everywhere and I worry about being hacked. I want to understand how accounts actually get broken into and set up protection I will keep using, without becoming a security expert.

Change any word so it fits your situation. The course is built from what you type and a few setup questions.

Start today

Four things you can do before the course exists.

Useful on their own. The course is for when you want the whole skill, not just the first move.

  1. Give your email its own password today

    The NCSC advises a strong password for your email that you use nowhere else, because someone who gets into your email can reset passwords for your other accounts. If your email password is reused anywhere, change it first.

  2. Build passwords from three random words

    The NCSC recommends combining three random words for a password that is long enough and easier to remember. Illustration of the pattern, not one to use: 'otterlanternpebble'. Avoid birthdays, pet names and sports teams, which can often be found on social media. A password manager can create and store them for you.

  3. Turn on 2-step verification

    In the security settings of your email, bank and main social accounts, switch on 2-step verification, also called two-factor authentication. Then a stolen password alone is not enough to get in. The NCSC says it takes only a few minutes to set up.

  4. Treat a request for your code as an attack

    A sign-in code is a key to your account. If someone messages or calls asking you to read one out, even claiming to be your bank or a friend, do not share it. Contact the service yourself through its official app or website.

Sources: NCSC: use a strong and separate password for your email; NCSC: turn on 2-step verification; NCSC: three random words. Practical examples are starting points, not promised results.

Best for
AI & technology
Prerequisites
None. Bring the situation you have.
Course length
7 to 30 lessons, sized to your goal
Lesson pace
About 10 minutes a day
Format
Read it, or play the audio
Access
Available on the App Store, with early features and Android testing access

Before the course is built

Setup asks about your situation first.

Lesson 1 opens on the moment you describe, and the examples use your role. For this request, expect questions like these.

  1. Which accounts matter most to you: email, banking, social media, shopping, or work?
  2. How do you manage passwords now: memory, a notebook, the browser, or a password manager?
  3. Has one of your accounts ever been hacked or locked?

Right for now

If any of this sounds familiar, start here.

Same password everywhere

One leak could open most of your accounts.

Security advice feels endless

You want the few steps that matter most.

You were hacked once

And want to make sure it does not happen again.

Course arc

Where the course goes, in order.

Cadence writes the lessons for you, so the exact path follows your answers. This is the ground a course built from this sentence covers.

01 / 06

How accounts get taken

Reused passwords, phishing, guessing and leaked databases.

Email first

Why your email can be used to reset everything else.

Strong, separate passwords

Three random words, password managers and habits to drop.

2-step verification

Codes, apps and passkeys, and which accounts need them first.

Recognising phishing

Requests for logins and codes and how to check them safely.

If you are hacked

Regaining access, changing passwords and warning contacts.

What changes

What you will be able to do, and what you will stop believing.

You will be able to

Know how accounts get taken

Understand reused passwords, phishing and leaked data in plain terms.

Protect the key accounts

Secure your email first, then banking, shopping and social media.

Respond to a takeover

Know the first steps if an account is compromised.

Ideas this course corrects

Swapping letters for symbols makes a password strong

The NCSC notes criminals know tricks like replacing o with 0, so they add little strength. Length and using a separate password for each account matter more.

Nobody would bother hacking me

Many attacks are automated. Passwords leaked from one site are tried on other sites at scale, whoever you are.

Course questions

What to know before you start.

How to protect your accounts from hackers: what can I do today?

Give your email its own password today. The NCSC advises a strong password for your email that you use nowhere else, because someone who gets into your email can reset passwords for your other accounts. If your email password is reused anywhere, change it first. Build passwords from three random words. The NCSC recommends combining three random words for a password that is long enough and easier to remember. Illustration of the pattern, not one to use: 'otterlanternpebble'. Avoid birthdays, pet names and sports teams, which can often be found on social media. A password manager can create and store them for you. Turn on 2-step verification. In the security settings of your email, bank and main social accounts, switch on 2-step verification, also called two-factor authentication. Then a stolen password alone is not enough to get in. The NCSC says it takes only a few minutes to set up. Treat a request for your code as an attack. A sign-in code is a key to your account. If someone messages or calls asking you to read one out, even claiming to be your bank or a friend, do not share it. Contact the service yourself through its official app or website.

Is this a fixed course?

No. Cadence builds the course when you type the sentence and answer a few setup questions, so the lessons follow your situation. This page describes what a course built from this request covers. You see the whole path before Lesson 1.

Who is this course for?

A course on everyday account security. It covers how accounts are usually broken into, why your email account matters most, long unique passwords and password managers, turning on 2-step verification, recognising phishing, and what to do if an account is taken over. It sits under AI & technology in the Work & ambitions part of the library.

Do I need any prior experience?

No. Setup asks what you already know and where you want to use it, and the course starts from there. Bring a real situation if you have one; the examples are built around it.

How long does it take?

Courses run 7 to 30 lessons of about 10 minutes, sized to what you asked for. One lesson a day is the intended pace, and you can go faster. Lessons can be read or played as audio.

Does this course award a certificate or degree?

No. Cadence is for practical self-learning and does not award accredited degrees or professional certification.

Start today

Type it, answer a few questions, open Lesson 1.

The sentence to type

I use the same few passwords everywhere and I worry about being hacked. I want to understand how accounts actually get broken into and set up protection I will keep using, without becoming a security expert.
Download Cadence on the App Store

Android early access

Join Cadence on Android.

Tell us your goal and Google Play email. We will send your tester invite when it is ready.

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