When you type in your long standing password into your laptop, computer or tablet it seems like second nature to you. But did you know that there could be thousands of other people out there with exactly the same go-to password as you? If you think you’re being original by using your favourite band, football team or child’s name, think again! Cyber security is an all important topic that has hit the headlines recently, so it might be time to think about changing your trusty password right now.
The band who is dominating our passwords right now
According to recent study by the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre, the band ‘Blink-182’ is the most common musical artist to be used as a password right now. It is also said to be the most predictable password, because it meets a lot of standard criteria. Most people need to create a password that has a combination of numbers, letters, uppercases and special characters, so this seems like the ideal candidate right? If you are a Blink-182 fan who thinks they were being clever with this password choice, you might want to update some of your accounts.
Do you use any of the following popular passwords?
As well as band names, there are many other obvious and unoriginal passwords in circulation right now. If you are using the name of your child, best friend or spouse you might want to change your habits. Some of the most regularly used proper names include, Charlie, Jessica, Ashley and Daniel. Football teams such as the Eagles and the Hawks also make prominent appearances in people’s password choices.
Even more shockingly people are still using the word ‘password’ for as a key into their confidential information (come on guys!). The term ‘qwerty’ is also high on the list of commonly used passwords, along with the numbers 11111 and 123456.
These simple and guessable words are making a lot of people’s online security unsafe, so it might be time to update your passwords. According to the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre a string of three random words put together are a much better option for your password. A couple of funny examples could be, Jaxon Poops Pineapple or Mermaids Discover Pigeons! If you really want to be safe though, enabling two factor authentication is a must!
How can Ever Nimble & MyGlue help your cyber security?
Instead of falling victim to hackers, say hello to our favourite password management tool MyGlue. A place in which you can create and store all of your current passwords. Not only will you have full control of the data, but you won’t run the risk of forgetting your innovative password creation as it is all stored for you. If you are running a business, you also have the option to share passwords securely across your organisation. Streamline your business processes, tighten your cyber security and centrally store all of your passwords in one space.
Time to change your password now, right?
So don’t make yourself a victim to cunning (or not so cunning considering the simplicity of some passwords) hackers. Take your cyber security seriously and invest in special measures to keep your passwords safe and secure. Nowadays a lot of our confidential information is held online and on our computers, so be innovative and think outside the box next time you need to change your password. Your favourite Game of Thrones character might not be the best option in the foreseeable future!
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