‘Don’t share passwords with your partner’

Mr Charles Nii Ayiku Ayiku, an ICT lecturer at the University of Professional Studies, has warned partners in relationships not to share passwords with each other.

Mr Ayiku, who is also the Chairman for Programmes and Communications of the Internet Society (ISOC) Ghana, said in choosing a password, one must be able to remember it easily and also keep it long, complex and unique by combining numbers, letters and symbols that may contribute greatly to its strength.

Mr Ayiku who gave the caution in an interview noted that in relationships, it was very easy to share many things with our partners from homes and bank accounts to dinners and cars.

However, he cautioned that it is not advisable to share email or social media password with your partners because it could hinder privacy.

“Some may think it is romantic to share such things but it could lead to a privacy or security nightmare,” the IT expert warned.
Mr Ayiku said even though it is a way of building trust, it did not necessarily mean sharing passwords with your partner was always a good idea.

“Sometimes, your partner may not be the one to create the security nightmare for you. Your partner with whom you share your devices such as laptops may unconsciously create a security risk for you by lending your device to others” he pointed out.

The ICT lecturer hinted that it may seem good to share passwords while the relationship is still happy, healthy and flourishing, but if a breakup were to occur in the future, a spouse or a partner may face a lot of risk that comes with your divorced partner potentially having access to your phone or accounts.

He said a partner could seem trustworthy during the initial days of marriage but they could easily use those passwords to commit identity theft, make unwarranted purchases or build up a large amount of debt, catch a virus on devices, among others.

“There is also a very real risk that your partner could use their access to your accounts to get revenge against you in the event of a breakup,” he said.

Mr Ayiku urged partners to make sure and take time to really get to know their partners in order to establish trust before giving them access to their personal devices or accounts.

Mr Ayiku encouraged partners to trust one another in order not to overstep each other's boundaries.

He said “ If you are apprehensive about sharing your passwords, ask yourself why. What kind of relationship do you have with your spouse? Will it be reciprocated? Do you think it will be abused?

“If you are strongly against it for justified reasons and you think it would ruin your relationship, then don't do it. You know what is best for both of you,” he stressed.