These are 10 worst passwords of the year 2020: Check if your password is on the list

New Delhi: Password manager NordPass has revealed the list of worst passwords of the year 2020, thereby categorising them in 12 types.

NordPass has listed 200 worst passwords of 2020, detailing as to how many times a password has been exposed and used. The Password manager has also analysed as to how much time it would take to crack these passwords. 

As per the study, NordPass said the most common password in 2020 was '123456' which was breached more than 23 million times. '123456789' secured the second position for the worst password of 2020, while 'picture1' was at third spot. 

"We also compare the worst passwords of 2019 and 2020, highlighting how their positions have changed. The green arrows indicate a rise in the position while the red ones - a fall off," NordPass said. 

"According to research, the majority of people use simple and easy-to-remember passwords, because it’s convenient. But the problem is that most memorable passwords are highly vulnerable to cracking. Here are the 12 categories of the most popular passwords the research has uncovered," it added.

NordPass has advised people to avoid using "dictionary words, number combinations, or strings of adjacent keyboard combinations" while setting the same. 

It cited examples some terrible passwords such as “password”, “qwerty”, or “123456” and said they are too easy to crack. 

"Also, refrain from repetitive characters, such as “aaaa” or “123abc”, and under no circumstances choose passwords based on personal details that might not be completely confidential, such as your phone number, birth date, or name," NordPass added.

How to create a strong password?

NordPass has also cautioned that one should never reuse passwords across multiple accounts and rather create a unique one for each account. Users should also make passwords long — and should not fix a password shorter than 12 characters.

It has also advised that one should use a mix of upper- and lower-case letters, numbers, and symbols to "significantly lower the risk" of getting the passwords cracked. 

"Also, make sure to change your passwords at least every 90 days," it added.