Beginner Python Project: Build a Secure Password Generator

Generate secure passwords easily with a generator in Python designed for creating passwords. A good password needs a mix of uppercase letters, lowercase letters, numbers, and symbols. Creating these manually is tedious.

This project introduces the useful built-in string module. It’s an essential tool in building a secure password generator using Python effectively.

Step 1: The string Module

Python’s string module has convenient pre-made constants for all the characters we need. When setting up your own password generator using Python, this module simplifies the process.

import string
print(string.ascii_lowercase)
# Output: abcdefghijklmnopqrstuvwxyz
print(string.digits)
# Output: 0123456789
print(string.punctuation)
# Output: !"#$%&'()*+,-./:;<=>?@[\]^_`{|}~

Step 2: Building the Character Pool

We’ll combine all these into one big list of possible characters using a handy Python Password Generator.

import string
import random

# Combine all character types
all_characters = string.ascii_letters + string.digits + string.punctuation

Step 3: The Generator Logic

We need to pick a random character from that pool, say, 12 times, to create a robust password when generating passwords with Python.

length = 12
password = ""

for i in range(length):
    # random.choice() picks one item from a sequence
    password += random.choice(all_characters)

print(f"Your new password is: {password}")

Step 4: The Professional Version (Using .join)

Python pros wouldn’t use a loop like that. They’d use "".join() and a list comprehension for efficiency when writing a professional-grade password generator in this language.

import string
import random

def generate_password(length=12):
    all_characters = string.ascii_letters + string.digits + string.punctuation
    
    # This one line does the whole loop!
    password = "".join(random.choice(all_characters) for i in range(length))
    return password

# Test it out
print(generate_password(16))
print(generate_password(8))

Challenge

Can you modify the function to ensure it always includes at least one number and one symbol? (Hint: You might need to generate them separately and shuffle the result using an advanced technique).