Liverpool FC might be gunning for its first Premier League title in 29 years, but the reds have already topped the table in one inauspicious category.
The National Cyber Security Centre says ‘Liverpool’ is the most common footie-themed password used on breached accounts, with ‘Chelsea’ in second place. The NCSC analysed databases of breached accounts as it seeks to warn users about the dangers of using easy-to-guess, and repeat passwords.
The overall worst password is still ‘123456’, which appeared in a whopping 23 million passwords found within the database. ‘123456789’ finished in second place, while ‘qwerty’, ‘password’ and ‘111111’ round out the top five.
‘Ashley’ was the most common name used in passwords, while ‘Michael’, ‘Daniel’, ‘Jessica’ and ‘Charlie’ were also in the top 5. When it comes to musical acts, ‘Blink-182’ finished top of the pile. The NCSC also says more than 30 million people on the list also use the same password for two sites or more.
“We understand that cyber security can feel daunting to a lot of people, but the NCSC has published lots of easily applicable advice to make you much less vulnerable,” Ian Levy, technical director of the NCSC, said (via BBC).
“Password re-use is a major risk that can be avoided – nobody should protect sensitive data with something that can be guessed, like their first name, local football team or favourite band.”
Related: Best VPN 2019
The survey, using data from security researcher Troy Hunt’s Pwned Passwords site, comes ahead of the NCSC’s Cyber UK conference, taking place in Glasgow later this week. Hunt says picking a strong password is the single most important step when protecting ourselves online.
“We typically haven’t done a very good job of that either as individuals or as the organisations asking us to register with them,” Hunt said.
Are you guilty of any of the password offences listed above? Get it sorted and then tweet us @TrustedReviews on Twitter.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
Editorial independence
Editorial independence means being able to give an unbiased verdict about a product or company, with the avoidance of conflicts of interest. To ensure this is possible, every member of the editorial staff follows a clear code of conduct.
Professional conduct
We also expect our journalists to follow clear ethical standards in their work. Our staff members must strive for honesty and accuracy in everything they do. We follow the IPSO Editors’ code of practice to underpin these standards.
