'123456,' 'donald,' and other terrible passwords people used this year
For what seems like the umpteenth time, "123456" and "password" are the most commonly used passwords this year.
Those combinations sit in the number one and two spots respectively, according to SplashData, who evaluates millions of leaked passwords each year for its worst 100 passwords list.
Somewhat unsurprisingly, "donald" was a new entrant to the list this year, sitting at number 23 on the rankings. We sincerely hope someone in the White House isn't using this password.
Other illustrious newbies include "111111," which was in sixth place this year, then "sunshine" in eighth, and "princess" in the eleventh spot.
"Hackers have great success using celebrity names, terms from pop culture and sports, and simple keyboard patterns to break into accounts online because they know so many people are using those easy-to-remember combinations," Morgan Slain, CEO of SplashData, said in a statement online.
Here are the top 25 most common passwords for 2018:
123456
password
123456789
12345678
12345
111111
1234567
sunshine
qwerty
iloveyou
princess
admin
welcome
666666
abc123
football
123123
monkey
654321
!@#$%^&*
charlie
aa123456
donald
password1
qwerty123
In case you're wondering what other common passwords were used last year, you can check 'em out here, and yes, they're also very bad.
If you've been naughty this year (in terms of internet security), here are a few pointers on how to create and remember a strong password.
Topics Cybersecurity
