A recent report from NordPass, a password management solution company, has unveiled startling insights into the password habits of internet users worldwide, including those in the UAE. The report highlights that in 2023, the most commonly used password in the UAE was ‘Dubai@2020’. This reflects a global trend where users often opt for passwords related to specific locations.
The report also indicated a shift in password preferences. In 2023, ‘123456’ emerged as the most common password among internet users not only in the UAE but also in India and across the globe. Interestingly, the weakest passwords were frequently used for streaming accounts.
In addition to ‘Dubai@2020’, India saw a surge in location-based passwords with ‘India@123’ gaining popularity. Another significant finding was the common use of ‘admin’ as a password in many countries, suggesting a lack of change from default settings.
Despite the introduction of new passwords, last year’s global favorite, ‘password’, remained in use. In India, variations like ‘password’, ‘Pass@123’, and ‘Password@123’ were among the most common choices.
The report’s findings were based on an analysis of a massive 6.6 TB database of passwords exposed by various stealer malware. Tomas Smalakys, CTO at NordPass, expressed concern over the stealth of such malware, often hidden in phishing emails that mimic legitimate organizations.
Alarmingly, almost one-third (31%) of the world’s most popular passwords are purely numerical sequences like ‘123456789’, ‘12345’, and ‘000000’. The report further revealed that up to 70% of passwords on this year’s global list could be cracked in less than a second.
In response to these security vulnerabilities, researchers are advocating for the adoption of Passkeys, a new form of authentication. Smalakys believes that while passwordless authentication represents a significant security advancement, its widespread adoption will not happen immediately.