From '123456' to 'Password@123': NordPass unveils India's riskiest passwords

A recent report by NordPass, a password management solution company, sheds light on the alarming prevalence of weak passwords among Indian internet users. In 2023, the study reveals that '123456' secured the top spot as the most commonly used password in India and globally.

The report emphasizes that individuals often opt for easily guessable passwords, with words related to specific locations and city names, such as 'India@123,' making their way into the list of frequently used passwords. Additionally, the term 'admin' remains prevalent, suggesting that users often neglect changing default passwords.

The report exposes that 'password,' 'Pass@123,' 'Password@123,' and similar variations are among the most common passwords used by Indians this year. Researchers analyzed a vast 6.6 TB database of passwords exposed by various stealer malware, highlighting the significant threat these pose to cybersecurity. Globally, the report indicates that almost one-third of the most popular passwords consist of purely numerical sequences, with 70% of these passwords susceptible to being cracked in less than a second. The researchers recommend the adoption of Passkeys as a more secure form of authentication to counteract the prevalence of weak passwords.