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If youâre anything like me, youâll sometimes wake up in a cold sweat thinking about having your online information stolen. After all, everything from your bank details to your passport info is likely on the web now â all it takes to access the sensitive data is a successful login.
Which is why (Iâm sorry, fellow forgetful people) making your passwords as diverse and complicated as you can is so important. As John Stirzaker, consumer expert at NetVoucherCodes.co.uk said, âItâs shocking to learn how many passcodes have been leaked which means millions face having their bank details stolen by online criminals. We donât want anyone falling victim to hackers by simply choosing a password which is easy to crack or by using the same one for multiple accounts.â
Thankfully, NetVouchers have shared the nine passwords you should avoid completely if you want to keep your data safe. These are:
1) Literally any identical password
I know it, you know it, but it bears repeating â you should never, ever use the same password across multiple accounts. âIf a hacker cracks one password and itâs used for all of your other accounts, theyâll have full access to your information and potentially bank details. Make sure to change it up for each account and to enable two-factor authentication for an extra layer of protection,â NetVouchers say.
2) Your motherâs maiden name
The problem with this, NetVouchers say, is that itâs both easy to guess and can provide answers for any additional security questions sites have.
3) Your street name
Itâs one of the easiest pieces of info a hacker can find out about you, so avoid making it your password.
4) Your petâs name
If you regularly, or even occasionally, post your pooch on social media, then hackers can find and use their name. NetVouchers recommend not even using it as a PART of your password.
5) For the love of all thatâs holy, donât use Password
Shockingly, many of us are still using the extremely basic and predictable code for some of our most important logins. âNever use âPasswordâ âPassword!â or even âPassword1â as itâs the first step online criminals will test out, particularly if they think youâre less tech-savvy,â NetVouchers say.
6) A name followed by the number 1
This is almost as predictable as âPassword,â the experts say. Say youâve had to change your password for a site, donât change your new password to the old one with a â1â at the end â they advise you âinclude multiple numbers and put in a range of special charactersâ in your brand-new, completely different passcode.
7) Donât use your surname
No mention of your surname, even with extra numbers, symbols, and digits, is safe, says NetVouchers. Itâs some of the most accessible information about you, so keep it far away from your valuable data.
8) Super obvious patterns
1234, ABCD, and other patterns are incredibly easy to crack. âHaving â1234â in the password is an easy code to crack, so be unique when using numbers or special characters,â NetVouchers say.
9) Anything in all caps
âHaving caps in the password strengthens its protection against scammers, but simply having all of it in caps makes it weaker. Be savvy with capital letters by using them on random letters rather than all of them,â NetVoucher says.
Right, Iâm off to do some resetting...