Bangalore: Young couples have always signaled their devotion to one another by various means like exchange of class rings or ID bracelets or even sharing locker combinations. In the new digital era, a more intimate custom has come to fore. It is the sharing of password. It has become fashionable for the youngsters to express their affection for each other by sharing their passwords to e-mail accounts, Facebook and other social networking accounts, etc. Sharing passwords has become more like a linchpin of intimacy among the young generation.

These young couples sometimes even create identical passwords and let each other read their private e-mails and texts. Though they acknowledge such digital entanglements are risky and a souring relationship can lead to people using online secrets against each other. But they say it is a part of what makes the representation of the shared password so powerful.

As reported by New York Times, Tiffany Carandang, a high school senior in San Francisco who shares passwords of Facebook and e-mails with her boyfriend said "It's a sign of trust. I have nothing to hide from him, and he has nothing to hide from me."  Cherry Ng, 16, listening in to her friend's comments to a reporter outside school said "That is so cute. They really trust each other." “We do” said Tiffany. "I know he'd never do anything to hurt my reputation," she added.