Study Shows We're Still Very Careless With Passwords

A new study published by the security firm SpyCloud suggests that most of us have very sloppy password habits. In fact, as our lives become increasingly connected and digital, we're becoming more reckless with online passwords.

Let's dig into the report and bring out some highlights.

More and More Passwords

We're spending more and more time online. In addition to scrolling through social media, watching videos, and chatting with other people, we now shop, order food, pay for things, control connected appliances, study, and consume news and entertainment online.

In order to do all of these things, we use dozens of accounts. And every account requires a password that keeps others from accessing our personal information. A recent study suggests that an average Internet user now has more than 100 passwords.

Password Reuse

With so many passwords to juggle, we try to make our lives easier by reusing the same passwords for multiple accounts. The study finds that 64% of people use the same password for two or more accounts.

I wrote earlier about why reused passwords posed a serious security risk. Basically, once a hacker compromises a single password, they will use it to access all other accounts tied to the user. So, if you reuse the same password for several accounts, you lose all of these accounts once the password is cracked or stolen.

Using Exposed Passwords

An even more troubling finding suggests that roughly 70% of people use passwords that have been exposed. The SpyCloud database contains a staggering 25 billion passwords that have been "recaptured," that is, gathered from leaked or stolen databases which are available on the dark web.

Most Internet users don't even realize that the passwords they are using may have already been exposed. And those who understand that this is a possibility don't always know what to do about it.

Picking Bad Passwords

Most of us also continue picking really bad passwords. As I wrote before, there is a method to creating a good password. Yet we often use garbage passwords because they are easy to remember and quick to type in. Time and again, the list of 10 most common passwords includes "pass," "123456," "password," "123456789," and "qwerty".

The study also highlights a proliferation of passwords inspired by movies and TV shows. The most common "pop culture" password is "Loki," followed by "Falcon," "Wanda," and "Dune".

If your passwords look similar to the ones listed on the Top 100 list above, it is safe to assume that your accounts have already been compromised. Change your passwords and make sure that the new ones you create are strong and safe.