5 Passwords You Should Never Use

There are soooo many stories in the news about hackers cracking passwords.  Sometimes these hacks are based on flaws in security systems (i.e. like ways around automatic account locking after 3 failed attempts at entering a password) but very often they are just simple guesses based on analysis of the more commonly used passwords… so DON’T USE THESE:

1. Password. Believe it or not, this is still a common password. Don’t use it.
2. Letmein. We recommend that you use passphrases that are memorable. Just don’t use this one. It ranks high on several lists of the most-used passwords.
3. Monkey. This common word appears on many lists of popular passwords. It’s also too short. Make passwords at least eight characters—the longer the better.
4. Your pet’s name. While you’re at it, don’t use any passwords that can be easily guessed, such as the name of your spouse or partner, your nickname, birth date, address, or driver’s license number.
5. 12345678. Avoid this and other sequences or repeated characters such as 222222, abcdefg, or adjacent letters on your keyboard (such as qwerty).

The text above is from a recent Microsoft post but  completely support their statements.

For a complete list of the most common passwords see http://www.urtech.ca/2012/09/solved-most-common-pin-codes-passwords-dont-use-these/

If you really want to use simple string of numbers or letters put a break or an oddity in that is easy for you to remember but hard to guess, like:

1. 97654321 – missing the “8” and backwards
2. qwerty89 – string along the keyboard that jumps up at “Y”
3. im5321 – my initials with a string of numbers missing the “4”

Remember that the US department of Defense and Microsoft have PROVEN that longer passwords are MUCH less likely to be cracked than shorter complex passwords. Soooo, qwertyuiop890 is MANY thousands of time less likely to be cracked than Q@7#R$s

I hope this helps keep you safe.

Happy safe computing!