Tag: common passwords

Weak Passwords – Cybersecurity

Too Easy, Too Weak: Password Patterns Still Concerning

Weak password security is one of the main contributing factors to the current wave of cybercrimes sweeping the world. Despite repeated warnings from industry experts to choose more complex passwords, many users still fail to follow this advice.

Recent research shows that internet users continue to opt for passwords that are easy to guess or crack, leaving the door wide open to cyberattacks. Let’s take a closer look at this phenomenon and find out what organisations can do to strengthen their security.

Why are we still using simple passwords?

For many years, cybersecurity experts have been sounding the alarm about simplistic passwords that are far too easy to guess. Passwords like “12345”, variations on the word “password”, or even the user’s own name are still frequently chosen, despite the widely publicised dangers of doing so.

In fact, 2023 saw South Africans choose the password “admin” most frequently of all.

While some experts blame users for being lax or unoriginal, there is a possible psychological explanation for the simple passwords we choose: we believe that if we came up with them, they must be unique and impossible to guess.

This human tendency to overestimate our own ability at certain tasks is known as the Dunning-Kruger effect, a well-documented psychological phenomenon.

This effect applies to everything from our perceived ability to drive at high speeds, our competence at work, and even our attractiveness or social skills. Password creation is yet another area where we often think we are better than we really are.

Best practices for password creation

Unfortunately, cybercriminals are much better at guessing or decoding our passwords than we are at creating them.

To avoid this and secure crucial business data, team members in every organisation should be trained to apply best practices for password creation, which include:

  • Using a password length of at least eight characters: Longer passwords are harder to guess and cannot be easily cracked by automated password-cracking software.
  • Including numerals and special characters: This adds complexity to passwords, making them far less likely to be compromised.
  • Avoiding personal information: Don’t choose words related to your daily life, such as hobbies, interests, or your workplace. Cybercriminals carrying out social engineering attacks may have already researched these aspects of your life and could use them to crack your password.

Password security and secure cloud storage – key aspects of every cyber defence strategy

A strong password adds an extra layer of security to your data, especially as cyberattacks and ransomware incidents become more frequent, costing businesses millions of rand each week.

In addition to strong passwords, secure cloud storage featuring encryption technology has become a non-negotiable element of every effective cybersecurity strategy.

To learn more about these technologies and how they can benefit your company’s online security, visit our product page today.

Common Password Mistakes | Password Security

Common Passwords & 6 Common Mistakes People Make

A secure password is the first line of defence against cybercrime, yet many of us still use passwords that the average 10-year-old could crack without blinking. If you’re still using classics like 123456 or admin, it’s time to change that password before you become the next victim of the data crime wave.

A recent survey has revealed South Africa’s top 20 favourite passwords, and most of them aren’t hard to guess – especially for cybercriminals. Let’s take a look at what internet users from Cape Town to the Limpopo are opting to use, and what you should probably use instead.

Do you use a globally preferred password?

A report by Online security company NordPass has revealed that SA’s 2023 most used passwords have a worrying global trend, and most of them will be familiar to anyone who has worked in an office, especially in the IT department. Here are some of the trusty strings of numbers and letters that people turn to when securing their valuable data.

  1. admin
  2. 123456
  3. 336699
  4. password
  5. weiter

While “admin” is the most common password used in South Africa and second most used globally, there were a couple of passwords in the lineup unique to SA. These included “Mandela1964”, “sexy1234” and ‘october@24’.

Taking a look at this year’s list, it’s clear that local netizens have a long way to go in improving their password game. Most of the country’s favourite passwords can be cracked in less than two seconds, making them close to worthless as a cybersecurity defence in real terms.

As a security conscious net user, you’ll definitely want to do better than “password” – and we’d love someone to explain what “weiter” even means!

Here are 6 of the most common password mistakes and the best practices that you can adopt to secure your data with a strong password.

Six password mistakes to avoid

  • Changing a single letter and thinking its enough. Single letter substitutions like “p@ssword” aren’t effective barriers against cybercrime – in fact they can be cracked in seconds.
  • Not using a password generator. A unique, randomly generated password is far more difficult to crack than a common one that’s used by millions of people.
  • Sharing your password. There’s almost no situation which should call for you to reveal your password to anyone – and if you do, they’ll need to take special steps to keep it secret.
  • Not changing your password regularly. You’ll want to update your password every few months – and if one of your devices has been stolen or compromised you should do it right away.
  • Keeping default passwords. Devices that are protected with the password “admin” are all too common, and the only people who approve of them are hackers.
  • Not having an integrated cybersecurity strategy. A strong password should be matched with a firewall and secure cloud storage to maximise your data a protection level.

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