Most popular movie names used as passwords A ranking compiled by SpecOps Software based on its database of over 2 billion compromised passwords

Numerous surveys have shown that Internet users use easy-to-guess passwords, including their pet’s name, names of family members, important dates, their favorite sports team as a password, and this could expose them at the risk of their accounts being compromised by cybercriminals. Although these passwords are easy to remember for Internet users, it could put their accounts at the mercy of the crimes of cybercriminals. Attackers could extract information from public social media posts that could provide clues to things like pet names. They could then attempt to use this information to break into accounts.

They could also use a brute force attack tool to attempt to hack into accounts, which use simple, one-word passwords with relative ease. Using default credentials such as password also provides cybercriminals with an easy method of breaking accounts.

By using a weak password, Internet users can put personal information or financial details at risk, especially if that same password is used on multiple accounts. They could even potentially expose their employer to cyberattacks, if the theft password is also used to secure corporate accounts and cybercriminals try to see if the password they’ve taken from a personal account is working.

Specops Software, a provider of password management and authentication solutions, has compiled rankings of the most used passwords among those that have been compromised. Taking advantage of Star Wars Day, an unofficial party celebrating the Star Wars saga which takes place on May 4, Specops took the opportunity to make a ranking on the theme:

If your coworkers are Star Wars fans, they might not use a password. This May 4, an unofficial celebration of the Star Wars fandom, Specops Software investigated the most popular Star Wars-themed passwords in the compromised password lists. This new research also coincides with the latest update to the Specops Breached Password Protection list.

According to our new study, which analyzed over 800 million compromised passwords, a subset of the more than 2 billion compromised passwords in Specops Breached Password Protection, fan favorite Yoda took the top spot. , appearing on lists of compromised passwords nearly 37,000 times. After that, “starwars” himself took second place, appearing over 22,000 times with the adorable “ewok” behind more than 17,000 times.

Here are the top 20 Star Wars themed passwords found in the compromised password lists:

1. yoda
2. starwars
3. ewok
4. hansolo
5. Darth Vader
6. bobafett
7. darthmaul
8. grumpy
9. obiwankenobi
10. lukeskywalker
11. macewindu
12. anewhope
13. plokoon
14. mandalorian
15. princessleia
16. kyloren
17. kuiil
18. iamyourfather
19. quigonjinn
20. rogueone

I’m perhaps the biggest Star Wars fan at Specops, so I understand why Star Wars is such a source of inspiration for passwords, joked Darren James, Product Specialist at Specops Software.

May 4 also marked the addition of 3 million leaked passwords to the Specops Breached Password Protection list, which already had 2 billion. The publisher explains that his tool blocks the use of these known compromised passwords in Active Directory.

To stay in the category of movies used as passwords, let’s look at the April 2021 ranking of Specops.

As the Oscars approach, we’re updating our list to share the top movie titles used in the leaked passwords.

As the entertainment community and moviegoers around the world eagerly await to see which films win the most prestigious award in entertainment, at Specops we roll out the red carpet to reveal the most popular movies of all time found in our list of compromised passwords.

According to our new study, which analyzed over 800 million compromised passwords a subset of Specops Breached Password Protection, which contains over 2 billion compromised passwords fan favorite “Rocky” took the top spot. , having been used 96,000 times. Just behind was “Hook”, which has appeared over 75,000 times and “The Matrix” over 50,000 times.

Here are the top 20 movie names used as passwords that have been compromised:

1. Rocky
2. Hook
3. Matrix
4. Batman
5. Psycho
6. Superman
7. Avatar
8. Mummy
9. Twilight
10. Star wars
11. Spiderman
12. Frozen
13. X-men
14. Ironman
15. Jaws
16. Shrek
17. Twister
18. Gladiator
19. Titanic
20. Terminator

While we present this list of compromised passwords in a good mood, what should not be taken lightly is the negative impact weak and compromised passwords can have on cybersecurity risk. ‘an organization. Passwords that appear on compromised password lists can leave email, applications, servers, and corporate devices vulnerable to the unauthorized access necessary to launch a cyber attack.

To stay secure, organizations should implement strong password policies that address weak and compromised passwords, such as those known to be compromised.

Entities like the NCSC are urging Internet users to make passwords composed of three random words to help secure their accounts, passwords that can be saved in an Internet browser. The idea is that three words are relatively easy to remember, but by making them random, it will prevent cybercriminals from breaking their way into accounts, even using brute force tools:

when you use different passwords for your important accounts, it can be difficult to remember them all. A good way to create strong, memorable passwords is to use three random words. Don’t use guessable words (like your pet’s name). You can include numbers and symbols if necessary. For example, “RedPantsTree4!” Saving your passwords in your browser will help you manage them.

In its Cyber ​​Aware campaign, the NCSC advises individuals and organizations to follow the following password best practices:

• Use a strong and distinct password for your email. If a hacker breaks into your email, they can reset passwords for your other accounts and gain access to information you have stored about yourself or your business. Your email password must be strong and different from all your other passwords.
• Create strong passwords using three random words When using different passwords for your important accounts, it can be difficult to remember them all.
• Don’t use guessable words (like your pet’s name). You can include numbers and symbols if necessary. For example, “RedPantsTree4!”
• Saving your passwords in your web browser will help you manage them and protect you against some threats, such as bogus websites (for example, the password manager will not work if the website is a fake version of the website. designed to steal credentials).

It is also recommended that users enable two-factor authentication to provide additional barrier to attacks.

Specops brings another arrow to your bow with its Specops Password Policy solution: Specops Password Policy incorporates best practices and password guidelines from NIST or CMMC, and makes it easier for IT administrators to enforce stronger passwords and block weak passwords that appear on lists of compromised passwords.

Specops Password Policy

And you ?

Have you ever used a name or a character from a movie / series to create your password?
Do you use the password manager built into your browser or another password manager? Which ?
If you don’t use it, how do you store your passwords?
How do you proceed to create your password (generated by a manager, combination of certain words and symbols, etc.)?
What do you think of the idea of ​​using three random words to compose a password?
Are you using a strong password for all sites? If not, how do you determine which site to use a strong password on?