Yahoo hack: Strong passwords don't have to be hard

I don’t think that anyone was really surprised when hackers posted 450,000 unencrypted passwords online in what they said was a wake-up call intended to help Yahoo and spur them into improving security. That’s like saying Al Capone “protected” Chicago businesses from fires, stray bullets and other “accidents.”
But the sad truth is that Yahoo joins the growing list of agencies and companies that have recently had their user data stolen or attacked.
Among the stolen passwords were several hundred with federal government e-mail addresses, ending in .gov or .mil, including some from the FBI, Homeland Security Department and Transportation Security Agency, the security company Rapid 7.