Brownie Security

I know that identity theft is at an all time high, and that lives can be crushed by mounting debt that doesn't even belong to them. I understand that banking sites and credit card numbers need to be kept safe. I understand that I'll have to scream my mother's maiden name into the phone so Bajeep can hear me all the way in India just to make a payment. You know, to protect my account from all those crazy people that go around paying other people's Visa bills...

It just hit me this morning while I was on kraft.com trying to sign up for a recipe newsletter. They won't add me to their e-mail list until I make an account. AN ACCOUNT... on kraft.com. "No honey, don't get the Tillamook cheese. Get the Kraft... I have an account with them." Oh, sorry. I got carried away there. So I fill in the endless blanks to start my account, then it asks for a password. 'For security reasons we require passwords 6-10 characters with at least one number' Seriously? To protect my online recipe box? God forbid someone hack into my kraft.com account and steal that free recipe for butterscotch brownies. THE HORROR! Gone are the days when a passWORD was just a word and not a complex code that I'll never remember and have to write down completely defeating the purpose of it being secretive. Much like my front door.

I got locked outside with 4 kids under 5 inside (2 years ago) and luckily was able to slip in the side door. To avoid this horrible situation we got one of those keypad levers. It is always locked, and you simply punch in the code to unlock the door. It makes me feel quite secure to know that my front door is always locked without have to double check it. The problem is that my 5 year old knows the code, and likes to shout it out as she punches it in. I'd like to say my husband is better, but he makes a habit of yelling it out the window to his friends instead of actually answering the door. Occasionally I change the code and watch people slam into the door expecting it to open, but that should really be on the dirty little secrets post.

I just don't understand how in the world that we live I need to enter my library card number and pin just to search the library website for a book, yet people write checks with their routing number, bank account number, name, address, and sometimes driver's license number to strangers on Craigslist. Secure... really secure.