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Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy; es más seguro.

Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy; es más seguro.
Please update your password today; it’s safer.
FromLesson 18inHardcore Spanish (Spain)

Questions & Answers about Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy; es más seguro.

What does the verb form in actualice tell me?

It’s the formal singular imperative (addressing usted). It comes from the present subjunctive of actualizar: (usted) actualice. Note the spelling change from z to c before -e (actuali-c-e), which is an orthographic rule with verbs ending in -zar.

  • tú: actualiza
  • usted: actualice
  • vosotros: actualizad
  • ustedes: actualicen
How would this sentence change with different levels of formality or number in Spain?
  • Informal singular (tú): Por favor, actualiza tu contraseña hoy; es más seguro.
  • Informal plural (vosotros): Por favor, actualizad vuestras contraseñas hoy; es más seguro.
  • Formal plural (ustedes): Por favor, actualicen sus contraseñas hoy; es más seguro.
Is the comma after Por favor necessary?
It’s standard and recommended because por favor acts like a parenthetical: Por favor, actualice… In short prompts you may see it without the comma, but with careful style the comma is preferred. You can also write it with exclamation marks for emphasis: ¡Por favor, actualice…!
Is the semicolon in …hoy; es más seguro correct, or should I use a period?
A semicolon is correct to link two closely related independent clauses. Many editors would simply use a period: Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy. Es más seguro. Avoid a plain comma here (that would be a comma splice in Spanish as well).
Why es and not está in es más seguro?
With security/safety, Spanish uses ser to express a general quality: es (más) seguro = “is (more) secure/safe.” Estar seguro normally means “to be sure/certain” (of a person: estoy seguro de que…), not “to be safe” in this context.
Why seguro and not segura? What is it agreeing with?

Here es más seguro refers to the idea/action of updating today, so Spanish uses the default masculine form to describe a general statement. If you want agreement with a specific feminine noun like contraseña, you’d rephrase:

  • Así la contraseña será más segura.
  • Hacerlo hoy hará que la contraseña sea más segura.
  • Su cuenta estará más segura.
Is actualizar the most natural verb for passwords in Spain?

Often you’ll see cambiar for passwords: Por favor, cambie su contraseña hoy; es más seguro.
Use restablecer when you reset because you’ve forgotten it: restablecer la contraseña. Renovar is uncommon for passwords.

Can I use clave instead of contraseña?
In Spain, contraseña is the default in general tech contexts. Clave appears in some services (especially banking), and is also common in Latin America. In Spain UI text, contraseña is the safest bet.
What is the gender of contraseña?
Feminine: la contraseña, una contraseña segura, esta contraseña.
Where can I place hoy?

All of these are fine, with slight shifts in emphasis:

  • Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy; es más seguro.
  • Por favor, actualice hoy su contraseña; es más seguro.
  • Hoy mismo, por favor, actualice su contraseña; es más seguro.
Can I move por favor to the end?
Yes: Actualice su contraseña hoy, por favor. This is polite and natural. With more urgency: ¡Actualice su contraseña hoy, por favor!
Is su ambiguous here?

Potentially, yes—su can mean your (formal), his/her/its, or their. The imperative actualice strongly suggests you (formal). To avoid any ambiguity:

Could I use a causal connector instead of the semicolon?

Yes. For explicit cause:

  • Por favor, actualice su contraseña hoy, porque es más seguro.
  • …, ya que es más seguro.
  • …, que es más seguro. (colloquial)
Can I replace su contraseña with a pronoun?

If the context already makes it clear, you can say: Por favor, actualícela hoy; es más seguro.
Note the accent: affirmative imperatives with attached pronouns take a written accent to preserve stress. Don’t double it (avoid saying both su contraseña and la together).

Any Spain-specific pronunciation tips for this sentence?
  • actualice: in most of Spain, ce is pronounced like English “th” in “thin”: aht-kwah-LEE-the.
  • contraseña: the ñ is like “ny” in “canyon”: con-tra-SE-nyah.
  • más: stressed “mahss” (the accent mark signals stress).
  • seguro: seh-GOO-ro.
Why does más have an accent? What’s mas without it?
más (with accent) means “more.” mas (without accent) is a formal/literary “but,” roughly like pero. Here you need más.
Can I drop su and just say la contraseña?
You can: Actualice la contraseña hoy… In many interfaces it will still be understood as the user’s password, but su adds clarity and personalization.
How could I make the second clause more explicit?

A few options:

  • Hacerlo hoy es más seguro.
  • Su cuenta estará más segura.
  • Es más seguro para su seguridad.
  • Para mayor seguridad, actualice su contraseña hoy.
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