The Most Hacked Passwords and Tips to Stay Safe Online
These days it seems like everyday there is some new app or account that needs to be created or kept up to date. Whether it be for work, family reunions, online shopping or myriad of other things, no matter what, a new password will be required. However, we do not always realize how much information these simple (or not so simple) keywords and numbers keep hidden and secure from troublesome hands.
A study led by the SafetyDetectives research team analyzed over 18 million passwords to find the 20 most common ones. The goal of the research was also to find patterns in the way people searched the web that could help hackers around the world.
Here at the 20 most used passwords:
- 123456
- password
- 123456789
- 12345
- 12345678
- qwerty
- 1234567
- 111111
- 1234567890
- 123123
- abc123
- 1234
- password1
- iloveyou
- 1q2w3e4r
- 000000
- qwerty123
- zaq12wsx
- dragon
- sunshine
It is important to note that most websites that have a password strength check in place would not allow the passwords above.
In fact, to stay safe, it is not only important to have a strong password, but also to change it regularly. Another tip that JTFSecurity recommends is to install a trusted VPN. Logging out of your accounts on all devices when you are done using them, is also a very easy and reliable way to prevent getting hacked. Finally, even though it might seem counterintuitive, disabling fingerprint and facial recognition is another way to decrease the chances of getting hacked. In addition, someone could technically point at your face to gain access to your phone with facial recognition (in certain unfortunate situations), or force you to place your finger on the print. In these situations passwords would be more difficult to extract.
No matter if you are in Vancouver, Toronto or Hong Kong, passwords retain so much information about every individual that it is crucial, as the cyber world expands, that everyone takes care of their private information.
Stay safe everyone,
The JTFSecurity Team