Breakdown of С одной стороны, пароль — это безопасно, но с другой, система уязвима для взлома.
это
this / it is
один
one
пароль
password
но
but
Questions & Answers about С одной стороны, пароль — это безопасно, но с другой, система уязвима для взлома.
In the second part, it just says но с другой instead of но с другой стороны. Is it normal to drop the word for "side" here?
Yes, it is very common and sounds natural, exactly like saying "but on the other" in English. You can include стороны if you want to sound slightly more formal or deliberate, but dropping it avoids repetition.
Why are there commas right after С одной стороны and с другой?
In Russian, introductory phrases that set up a speaker's attitude or structure a thought (like "on the one hand" or "unfortunately") must be separated from the main sentence by commas. Since с другой acts as the second introductory phrase, it needs a comma before the main clause система уязвима begins.
Why is it пароль — это безопасно with a neuter/adverb ending, rather than making the adjective agree with the masculine noun пароль (безопасный)?
Using [noun] — это [adverb] is a common structure to evaluate a broad concept or state a general truth. Instead of describing a specific password, it means "the concept of using a password is a safe practice." If you said пароль безопасный, it would mean "this specific password is secure."
Why use the short-form adjective уязвима instead of the full-form уязвимая?