It is unfortunate that Adele's private life has been targeted and this is a reminder to anyone who uses email to ensure that they adopt a secure password policy. It is not clear exactly what happened and it is also unlikely that a hacker was expecting to make much money out of revealing Adele's private photos, however it is distressing for anyone who protects and values their private life. And this does not just mean celebrities. It is worth remembering that our email accounts often contain an elaborate and detailed history of our lives, some of which may have real value to hackers. For example, it is very common for people to send each other financial information such as bank accounts, PayPal details, and even worse, account ids and passwords. The following top 5 tips are worth remembering:

1) Never use a password that contains personal information that could easily be guessed. For example the name of family members or pets along with special dates such as birthdays and anniversaries.

2) Use a password generator that creates a password that cannot easily be guessed or cracked. Some web browsers will provide this facility as will password managers.

3) Consider using a password manager as this will remove the temptation to use a password that can be remembered, which usually means it is not secure.

4) If your email system offers 2-factor authentication, seriously consider using it.

5) Finally, never share your password with anyone, and never send it in a message, such as email, SMS, WhatsApp , etc.