Is your password 123456? Here's why you should make it stronger
With the sheer number of passwords needed today, it may come as no surprise that over 60 per cent of Canadians feel overwhelmed, and over a third reportedly forget their passwords monthly.
However, whether it’s to watch your favourite streaming service, take money out of your bank account or check your loyalty programs, passwords are likely needed.
And, they’re oftentimes your only barrier between security and data breaches, which affect an estimated 13,000 Canadians per-year.
“A simple password is often what stands in the way of you and your personal data being stolen and being used by some criminal somewhere,” Robert Falzon, who is the head of engineering at Check Point Canada, said.
“A simple password is often what stands in the way of you and your personal data being stolen and being used by some criminal somewhere,” Robert Falzon, who is the head of engineering at Check Point Canada, said.
Check Point Canada is a software provider for IT security. It recommends using complex passwords with 20 characters and a mix of upper and lowercase letters, symbols and numbers in addition to multi-factor authentication while changing passwords frequently.
According to one of several surveys done yearly to determine the most common passwords being used, 123456, qwerty, password, admin and welcome are among the most popular.
It is not recommended to use the same password across different accounts, recycle passwords or use guessable passwords like birthdays or pet and family names. Browser-stored passwords are also considered weak.
Some cybersecurity companies, like Okta, are beginning to phase out passwords all together.
“The average Canadian is running into 20 different applications a day [where they require a password],” Dan Kagan, an Okta manager, said.
“We use biometrics, voice authentication, finger prints [and] facial identification, not unlike what is happening out there with mobile phones.”
While it may still be awhile before ditching passwords for facial recognition becomes normalized for all, it is still advised to create strong, hard to hack passwords.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
2 died in plane crash near Squamish, B.C., police confirm
Two people died after a plane went down in a remote area near Squamish, B.C. on Friday, authorities have confirmed.
Grayson Murray's parents say the two-time PGA Tour winner died of suicide
Grayson Murray's parents said Sunday their 30-year-old son took his own life, just one day after he withdrew from a PGA Tour event.
Blaine Higgs 'furious' over sexual education presentation
New Brunswick Premier Blaine Higgs has shared his anger on social media over a presentation in at least four high schools.
After more than 100 years, Newfoundland's unknown soldier returns home
An unknown Newfoundland soldier, who fought and died on the battlefields in northeastern France during the First World War, is back home this weekend for the first time in more than a hundred years.
This type of screen time has the worst effect on kids: experts
According to some experts, there is one type of screen time that is continuously excessive, and it's having a severe effect on our children.
Driver, 18, gets $3,000 ticket, 32 demerit points after speeding on Laval boulevard
A young driver received a hefty fine from Laval police after they say he was driving nearly 100 km/h over the posted speed limit.
Trump confronts repeated boos during raucous Libertarian convention speech
Donald Trump was booed repeatedly while addressing Saturday night’s Libertarian Party National Convention.
Indianapolis 500 starts after 4-hour rain delay with Kyle Larson in the field
The Indianapolis 500 started Sunday after a rain delay of four hours with NASCAR star Kyle Larson still at the track and in the race.
Some birds may use 'mental time travel,' study finds
Real quick — what did you have for lunch yesterday? Were you with anyone? Where were you? Can you picture the scene? The ability to remember things that happened to you in the past, especially to go back and recall little incidental details, is a hallmark of what psychologists call episodic memory — and new research indicates that it’s an ability humans may share with birds called Eurasian jays.