Effective ministry happens when your staff and members work as a team. But what do you do when you MUST share a ministry account password? Whether an email account, social media handle, or online banking, here are four tips to help your ministry share passwords more securely.
Develop password structure
The perfect situation would allow your ministry to use the same password for every account. We know we live in an imperfect world, so using the same password for all your church’s digital accounts presents a significant risk. If your password ever became compromised, all your ministry’s accounts would be at risk of tampering and unauthorized actions.
Developing a password creation structure for your ministry can help your church produce safer passwords for its digital accounts. Your password creation structure could include things like:
Strategic alterations to familiar words for your church or ministry
Replace vowels with numbers
Replace letters with special characters
The key is to make your password structure unique to your ministry and applicable to a plethora of potential passwords. You can always test your passwords through websites like passwordmeter.com and adjust based on your password report.
Use a password manager
One of the best ways to manage shared passwords and personal passwords is by using a secure password manager. Using systems connected to your web browser may be convenient but they typically are not the most secure option. Many password managers download directly to your device and require a secure login to access password information. The username and password for this account should be very strong and be kept by your ministry’s information technology (IT) manager or Board of Trustee’s Chair.
Many password managers have features that help you practice good password creation and usage practices. Some can even generate secure passwords for you that would be automatically applied so you won’t have to remember them. A premium feature that could help your ministry maintain password security is through applying login information without users being able to see the information. These are but some of the features available with different password manager applications. Be thorough in researching which one is right for your ministry.
Activate two-factor authentication
Whenever, wherever, and if ever available, use two-factor authentication. Your ministry should consider making this a part of your cybersecurity policy. All your ministry’s accounts should be connected to a standard church email address. Using two-step verification helps to ensure your ministry’s primary account stays secure and access is given on a per-case basis. Adding this feature is also useful in preventing unauthorized account logins.
Share information separately
If there is a need for a password to be shared quickly, send the login information in separate communications. Also, depending on the area of ministry (such as finance or facility management), securely sharing passwords may be necessary for transparency and accountability. Separating the account numbers, usernames, and passwords can make it harder for a hacker or unauthorized user to get access to information. Usernames or passwords are useless separate from each other. Placing all three in one email or text makes it easy for anyone who has access to that email to make changes to your account.
When you are covered by UMIP, we will be there when you need us. Churches have unique needs. As a part of the denomination, we understand the unique needs of United Methodist churches and their operations, which is reflected in our coverage options. Your ministry deserves outstanding insurance and UMIP works for you each day to help protect your church’s people, property, and finances.
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This content has been prepared by United Methodist Insurance Company (UMI) for informational purposes only. No article or document may accurately contemplate all possible scenarios or church resources. As such, this information is meant to foster discussion by the individual church and its members to develop a plan tailored to its own circumstances. UMI is providing this information with no warranties or guarantees of any kind and it should not be viewed as legal, financial, or other professional advice. All liability is expressly disclaimed. Any claim examples described herein are general in nature, may or may not be based on actual claims, and are for informational purposes only. Any coverage available for a claim is determined from the facts and circumstances of the claim as well as the terms and conditions of any applicable policy, including any exclusions or deductibles. In the event of a conflict with the content herein, the terms and conditions of any issued policy will control. Individual coverage may vary and may not be available in all states.
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