“123456” once again ranks #1 on SpashData’s annual worst password list. So, what is the worst password list and how is it gathered? The worst password list consist of the 25 most commonly used passwords, which were gathered from 3.3 million leaked passwords during the year.
So what is in the list provided by SplashData? Let’s find out!
- 123456
- password
- 12345
- 12345678
- qwerty
- 123456789
- 1234
- baseball
- dragon
- football
- 1234567
- monkey
- letmein
- abc123
- 111111
- mustang
- access
- shadow
- master
- michael
- superman
- 696969
- 123123
- batman
- trustno1
Thankfully, SplashData does not provide this list to get a good laugh, but instead uses the list to help educate others on what not to do. For example, CEO Morgan Slain stated:
Passwords based on simple patterns on your keyboard remain popular despite how weak they are. Any password using numbers alone should be avoided, especially sequences. As more websites require stronger passwords or combinations of letters and numbers, longer keyboard patterns are becoming common passwords, and they are still not secure.
SplashData also offers these three suggestions:
- Use passwords that have at least eight characters and mix up the types of characters used
- Try to use a different username and password combination on different websites
- Use a password manager to organize, protect, and generate new passwords
We know it’s much easier to keep your username and passwords the same everywhere you go; I don’t know anyone who wants to manage and remember 50 different username and passwords. But its worth taking the time to make sure your sensitive information is protected. And while there are great tools and resources out there to help manage and protect passwords, like anything else, be sure that you trust the resources you are using.
Well… what is your favorite password in SplashData’s 25 worst password list? Did 2014’s results surprise you? Let us know in the comment section below.