Once again, NordPass has dropped its annual list of the most popular passwords, and the results are as predictable as ever. Leading the pack for the second consecutive year, “123456” has claimed the crown as the world’s most common password. And no, this isn’t a joke. Out of all the creative, unique, and downright impossible-to-crack passwords we could come up with, millions of people are still relying on simple, predictable sequences to protect their data. It’s almost as if we want our information to be hacked!
NordPass has been analyzing passwords for years, and in five out of the last six editions of their list, “123456” has landed at the top. The only password that ever managed to dethrone it was, of course, the original “password” itself, which reigned supreme back in 2022.
Looking beyond the basic QWERTY patterns and ascending numbers, there are a few glimpses into the collective psyche of humanity. Some go the sentimental route with “iloveyou,” while others express a bit more angst with “fuckyou.” Pop culture enthusiasts make appearances with passwords like “pokemon,” “naruto,” and “minecraft,” while tech fans have “samsung” right up there as well. And in an attempt at security, a small contingent of users typed in the classic “P@ssw0rd,” though that too, by experts’ measures, is laughably easy to crack.
NordPass also looked at password trends around the globe, and the cultural differences are amusing. The UK’s top passwords include “liverpool,” clearly an homage to their favorite football club, while Australians favor “lizottes,” named after a popular music venue. Even Finland and Hungary add some intrigue, with “salasana” and “jelszo” at the top of their lists—both words simply translate to “password.”
To compile this report, NordPass analyzed a 2.5TB database of publicly available information, including sources from the dark web. The takeaway? The vast majority of these passwords can be cracked in under a second. So if you see your own password somewhere on this list, consider this your reminder to change it ASAP.
NordPass suggests trying passkeys, or at least a password with more complexity than “secret.” Because in today’s world, the last thing we need is for data protection to be a guessing game.
