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After Maharashtra Chief Minister Ashok Chavan asks people to e-mail him their grievances and suggestions, web experts fear his account may be hacked

tech-savvy: Ashok Chavan. Pic/ vishal kelkar

Web security experts have expressed fears over the announcement by CM Ashok Chavan's office yesterday, inviting citizens to e-mail their grievances, queries and suggestions on any issue to his e-mail id ashokchavanmind@rediffmail.com.

Experts fear that saboteurs may hack into the CM's e-mail account, compromising state security. Web security expert Vijay Mukhi said the CM should exercise caution. "The fact that our new CM is tech-savvy helps improve the image of our state government. However, there is every possibility that his e-mail id may be hacked into like the state government's official website has been in the past," said Mukhi.

Dr P Sekhar, chairman, Micro Technologies, said users were often careless with their passwords. "E-mail addresses are not strictly vulnerable.

"The servers are pretty safe. The safety of the e-mail login has to be secured, which depends on the handler of the mails."

How to protect govt's e-assets
Govt must declare e-assets like official websites and minister's official email ids as national property
Get experts and not babus to protect e-assets
If the CM's e-mail is not 100% secure, he should use public sites like Gmail, Hotmail or Yahoo
- Web security expert Vijay Mukhi

How to secure your password
Avoid using nicknames, date of birth, vehicle or phone number as your password
The longer the passwords, more secure it is
Softwares crack three-digit passwords in 15 minutes, four-digit password in 4 to 5 hours, five-digit in 2 days
Passwords that are eight-digit or longer are nearly impossible to crack 
Use separate passwords for e-mail, chatting and online purchasing
Don't write your passwords down or share them with anyone 
Use alphanumeric characters (932**%harinn2 for example) and special characters in your password
Do not open attachments from unknown senders
Install a good-anti virus software in your computer 
- Expert from Cyber Cell of Mumbai Police