Why Does Everything Need a Password Now?

There was a time when you could just… do things.

Turn something on.

Log into something.

Buy something.

No codes. No verification. No “create a password that includes a symbol, a number,

a capital letter, and something you’ll never remember again.”

Now?

Everything needs a password.

And not just a password…

A different one.

For everything.

And they all have rules

It can’t be something you’ve used before.It can’t be too simple.It can’t be too obvious.

And somehow…

it still ends up being something you can’t remember five minutes later.

So you reset it

Again.

And now you need:

• your email

• a code sent to your phone

• another code sent to your email

• and possibly the answer to a security question you made up in 2007

At some point, it shifts

You’re not logging in anymore.

You’re trying to break into your own account.

I even have a system… sort of

My friends have actually bought me those little books that say “WTF is my password?”

And I still can’t keep them straight.

We used to remember everything

Phone numbers.Addresses.Directions.

Now?

I can barely remember a password I created yesterday.

And yes… I know why

Security.

Protection.

It makes sense.

But still…

It feels like a lot.

Not because it’s difficult.

Just because it’s constant.

Everywhere you turn, there’s one more step. One more login.

One more thing to remember.

Because at this point…

the only thing I’m consistent at is forgetting my passwords!