The most-used password of 2020 will come as no surprise to anyone who’s ever seen a ‘most-used password’ list before.
In a year when cyberscams are skyrocketing due to coronavirus, the most-used password remains resolutely easy to guess.
It’s ‘123456’. Seriously.
That’s according to password management company NordPass, which published the 200 most common passwords of 2020 this week.
It seems that despite our huge advancements in technology over the years, some things don’t change.
The paradox is easy to see. As we accumulate more online accounts than ever, the pressure to remember all the different passwords is tough. Especially if you follow best practice and mix your password up with symbols and numbers.
Still, locking your accounts with ‘123456’ or the word ‘password’ is basically asking to have your data stolen.
The top 10 most common passwords of 2020 are:
- 123456
- 123456789
- picture1
- password
- 12345678
- 111111
- 123123
- 12345
- 1234567890
- senha
NordPass writes on its website: ‘According to research, the majority of people use simple and easy-to-remember passwords, because it’s convenient. But the problem is that most memorable passwords are highly vulnerable to cracking.
‘Less than half of the passwords (78 of them) were new to the 2020 “most popular” list.’
The UK’s National Cyber Security Centre technical director Dr Ian Levy says: ‘We understand that cybersecurity can feel daunting to a lot of people, but the NCSC has published lots of easily applicable advice to make you much less vulnerable.
‘Password re-use is a major risk that can be avoided – nobody should protect sensitive data with something that can be guessed, like their first name, local football team or favourite band.
‘Using hard-to-guess passwords is a strong first step and we recommend combining three random but memorable words. Be creative and use words memorable to you, so people can’t guess your password.’
To see the full list, check out NordPass’s website. And, naturally, if your password is on the list it’s probably a good idea to change it pronto.
