Don’t Use These 25 Passwords If You Don’t Want to Get Hacked
Choosing a password is a delicate matter. On the one hand, you want to make sure it’s something you’re likely to remember (especially if you have multiples!), yet on the other, you don’t’ want to be predictable, lest you wind up with oh, say, one of the most leaked Twitter passwords in the event of a hack (and yes, 123456 is one of them!).
In case you’re still struggling, Splash Data has released its annual list of the most popular stolen passwords of 2015, offering you a glimpse into what not to choose.
Comprised of more than two million hacked choices, ranked by popularity, below we give you the top 25 no-nos. (Hint: They’re not the most creative gems around.)
1. 123456
2. password
3. 12345678
4. qwerty
5. 12345
6. 123456789
7. football
8. 1234
9. 1234567
10. baseball
11. welcome
12. 1234567890
13. abc123
14. 111111
15. 1qaz2wsx
16. dragon
17. master
18. monkey
19. letmein
20. login
21. princess
22. qwertyuiop
23. solo
24. password
25. starwars
Moral of the story? Don’t use series of numbers, sports or anything about Dragon Master, got it? Splash Data also recommends using passwords that are 12 characters or more, mixing them up (i.e. numbers with letters, caps with lowercase) and password managers.
Duly noted!
Are you guilty of choosing any of the terms on this list? Share with us over @BritandCo!
(h/t IFL Science, photos via Getty)