Nowadays, cyberattacks and data are a daily occurrence. One of the tips from experts to prevent such incidents is to use strong and unique passwords .Every year, however, analyses show that most users are not very careful with their passwords and do not follow the instructions of security. Is the same true for 2020?
Over the past five years, the two most common and therefore worst passwords have been “123456” and “password.” Not much seems to have changed.
NordPass , a provider of password management solutions, analyzed 275,699,516 passwords that were leaked during data breaches in 2020. The analysis showed that the most common passwords are very easy and that it would take cybercriminals a second or two to gain access to accounts . Only 44% of those recorded were considered “unique.”
On Wednesday, NordPass released its annual password security report. The report found that the most common passwords were “123456,” “123456789,” “picture1,” “password,” and “12345678.”.
With the exception of “picture1”, which can take a few hours in a brute-force attack, the remaining passwords can be cracked in a few seconds either with dictionary scripts (which combine common phrases and numbers) or with a simple guess.
The 2020 report on password security found that many users are hesitant to use strong, unique, difficult-to-crack passwords, despite expert recommendations. Instead, passwords like “football,” “iloveyou,” “letmein,” and “pokemon” are still being used.
The 10 most common (and therefore worst) passwords of 2020, according to NordPass, are:
123456 (2,543,285 users)
123456789 (961,435 users)
picture1 (371,612 users)
password (360,467 users)
12345678 (322,187 users)
111111 (230,507 users)
123123 (189,327 users)
12345 (188,268 users)
1234567890 (171,724 users)
password (167,728 users)
When creating a password, you should avoid patterns or repetitions, such as letters and numbers next to each other on the keyboard. You should also avoid names and dates of birth because they are something that someone can easily guess. Ideally, use a combination of letters (uppercase and lowercase), numbers, and symbols.
Security experts constantly emphasize the importance of strong and unique passwords, and we should do so so we don't forget them. Ultimately, however, it is everyone's responsibility to protect their online accounts. This year's Nordpass report shows that most users are indifferent to their security.
Source: ZDNet
