Password perfect?

Recently, I attended the announcement of the 2021 New Zealand Hi-Tech Awards finalists where for the first time, NZTech entered the awards (Best Contribution to the Tech Sector category). Better still, we were named as finalists! The NZTech team is looking forward to attending the Awards Gala Dinner on 28 May in Auckland. Tickets are selling fast, so don’t miss out – it’s going to be a great event. Also, in case you missed it, meet the Hi-Tech Foundation’s winners of its first He Whetū Mārama Ngā Karahipi Leading Light Scholarship.

Every year, the Awards are the pinnacle of Techweek – a week-long festival of tech and innovation events throughout the country. With a theme of ‘Connecting for a better future’ we are helping Kiwi’s find out more about the opportunities that technology can bring for New Zealand. From inspiring the next generation into tech to showcasing our best tech to the world, it’s all there. Last week the Techweek2021 event programme was launched. More events are being added regularly, so remember to keep checking back.

Password perfect? This month, CERT is empowering New Zealanders, aged 55-64, to improve their online security. CERT’s latest data shows this age group lost over $4 million in 2020 to scams and frauds. Online banking, email and social media accounts can be vulnerable, especially if they don’t have strong passwords. The key message is making passwords easy to remember, but difficult for attackers to guess. CERT recommends creating passphrases – a mix of four or more random words. For example, catplumbertablechocolate. Passphrases are easier to remember, they’re as strong as a password that uses a mix of numbers, letters and symbols.

Tomorrow, I begin the day in Rotorua, speaking at the HarvestTech conference about the technology shaping New Zealand. I finish my day in Christchurch, catching up with members and joining Canterbury Tech’s monthly event. It is great to be able to travel around New Zealand again and enjoy our vibrant local tech scene.

Ngā mihi 

Graeme Muller
CEO 

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