If You Use These Simple Passwords, Stop It

Now may be the time to rethink your passwords.

Once again, "123456" and "password" were the worst passwords of 2015, according to stats from SplashData, a company that makes password management software. The company found that the two worst passwords are also the most-used passwords, and therefore easily cracked by malicious hackers.

Every January, SplashData releases its list of the worst passwords, based on analysis of over 2 million leaked passwords it has found. Since the company started compiling data in 2011, "123456" and "password" have consistently topped the list.

While standard passwords, including "qwerty," remain on SplashData's list, passwords inspired by Star Wars: The Force Awakens also emerged. No. 25 in the list of the worst passwords was actually "starwars," but the company also found references to "solo" and "princess."

"As we see on the list, using common sports and pop culture terms is also a bad idea," SplashData CEO Morgan Slain said in a statement.

Malicious hackers use a wide range of tools, including bots, to crack passwords. But more often than not, they start with simple codes, like "123456." As SplashData's report suggests, some hackers will hit pay dirt with those terms.

For that reason, companies urge people to use alphanumeric passwords with special characters. Users can also use password managers, which create random passwords for different accounts. In that case, they're only required to remember one password; account credentials are populated by the app.

Here is the full list of the worst passwords of 2015-16:
1.123456
2. password 
3. 12345678 
4. qwerty 
5. 12345 
6. 123456789 
7. football 
8. 1234 
9. 1234567 
10. baseball 
11. welcome 
12. 1234567890 
13. abc123 
14. 111111 
15. 1qaz2wsx 
16. dragon 
17. master 
18. monkey 
19. letmein 
20. login 
21. princess 
22. qwertyuiop 
23. solo
24. passw0rd 
25. starwars

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