125+ Password Statistics to Stay Aware & Safe in 2023

Even with the advancement in technology and the constant cases of privacy breaches, many people still use weak passwords such as “123456” or “password123” for their sensitive data. These types of passwords are risky because cybercriminals can easily hack them, compromising users’ privacy and exploiting their digital profiles. This is why many data breaches and theft cases have been popping up on the internet due to weak passwords. Over 80% of confirmed breaches happen because of reused, stolen, or weak passwords.

But there is something that can be done to prevent such breaches. Internet users can create strong passwords that even seasoned hackers can’t crack. One of the strategies is to create a mix of numbers, special characters, and letters as your password. That way, you can surf the internet without fear of losing your private information to criminals. This article contains over 130 password statistics for 2023, including essential reports and information to bolster the importance of using strong passwords to be safe online.

Vital Password Statistics to Note

Check the quick facts about password statistics below:

1. Internet users who don’t use password managers face higher risks of identity theft.
2. Up to 60% of individuals created stronger passwords after criminals accessed their devices and accounts unauthorized.
3. Researchers reported that an internet user spends up to 14 seconds typing a password. 
4. In 2021, up to 91% of internet users said that reusing passwords makes someone prone to data losses.
5. Hackers cracked more than 24 billion passwords in 2022.
6. Only one out of every two (1/2) internet users know the right things to do for password security.
7. More than 80% of internet users reported they were hacked due to using insecure, stolen, or reusing their old passwords.

Statistics for Weak Password Usage

When a user wants to create a password, they must consider how strong it will be against hackers and their activities. But due to not paying attention to the importance of using strong passwords, many users have lost their data to criminals.

Read the password statistics and facts below to learn about weak among them and their risks to internet users.

1. Many internet users usually use “123456” as their password.

2. Six of the ten interviewed confirmed they used the same passwords in their different gadgets and accounts in 2022.

3. Of those asked, 35% said their oldest passwords lasted three to five years.

4. According to research, only 12% of users consistently use different passwords.

5. 18% of individuals used their pet’s name as their password.

6. 1 out of 4 people needed to remember the last time they updated their email password.

7. Hacking tools can crack 96% of commonly used passwords in less than a second.

8. In the last 60 days, only 10% of users claim to have logged into their social media accounts using a password.

9. Only 8 to 11 characters were available in 64% of passwords.

10. The date and year of birth are used as passwords by 21% of people worldwide.

11. 75% of password hackers successfully guessed passwords.

12. 69% of the new generation Z use a variety of passwords for their accounts.

13. Half the Population in America believes in their password security.

14. 10% of social media users believe their passwords can be hacked by going through their handles.

15. 40% of individuals admitted to publicly sharing their passwords.

16. 12 out of 89% of people who understood the risk of sharing passwords still replicated the same action.

17. A unique character introduction in a 10-character password can increase the length of hacking time.

18. 13% of individuals interviewed used the same password on different handles.

19. 40% of individuals still use their first WiFi initial password.

20. Reports prove that 30% of individuals feel uncomfortable when their passwords are said aloud. 

21. about 12% of individuals use their spouse’s name to unlock their phones.

22. Regardless of account type, the same effort to create passwords was used by 13% of respondents.

23. 61% of people surveyed revealed that passwords with less than 8 characters were easily hacked.

24. 50% of individuals with music streaming accounts believe they have maximum security measures.

25. Only 11% of customers acknowledged using a password to log into their video streaming accounts for 60 consecutive days.

26. During a survey, 2.2% of people have used the same password for over 21 years.

27. 50% of leading IT experts consider passwords as an unstable security measure.

28. 10% of people still use passwords used during their school days.

29. ¼ of the surveyed people agreed to disclose to their roommates and close allies.

Password Statistics and Data Breaches

Breaches occasionally occur, which makes this session more interesting, covering password statistics on hacking from every sector.

30. Passwords under breaching risk account for 63% of social engineering breaches. 

31. Stolen information is one of the most common breaching techniques hackers use.

32. Compared to 2020, there was a 65% rate of stolen passwords in 2022.

33. An average sum of $4 was the payment for password-breaching applications on the black market.

34. Approximately 12% of people worldwide are acquainted with an individual with password breach issues. 

35. While 32% of people surveyed have experienced issues with stolen identities, 25% agreed that their passwords have been breached 2-3 times. 

36. 26% of people stand by their claims of a risk-free personal password.

37. 37% of IT experts are bugged with related user privacy and security threats.

38. 38% of Americans have used a cracked password once or twice.

39. Under eighteen (18) months, one in four people was affected by privacy threats.

40. According to 60% of IT technicians, taking over accounts has been directed severally at random customers.

41. 6.7 billion of the 24 billion password breaches in 2022 were those of unique characters and combinations.

42. 80% of basic cyberattacks on passwords were made accessible through stolen credentials. 

43. The report has shown that one out of every three internet users tries to replicate an individual’s password.

44. Illicit breakthroughs into people’s banking and other financial accounts could only give perpetrators 70.91 USD on average in the cybercriminal markets.

45. Research shows that about 23% of personal email profiles have been hacked by cybercriminals.

46. Account takeover attacks have made a more significant portion of the victims (above half) increase the rate at which they modify their passwords.

47. Report reveals that many people allow their lovers to utilize their passwords to log into their social media accounts, which marks about 10% of external users.

48. Research shows that 35% of victims to account takeover attacks have enhanced their securities using either multi-factor authenticator (MFA) or two-factor authentication (2FA).

49. It was reported that about 34% of password managers inform owners about a data breach.

50. According to reports, Account takeover attacks hit 35% of individuals who partook in a survey.

51. Research shows that stolen passwords cause 8 out of every 10 mail server breaches.

52. It is reported that about 18.4% of people who steal helpful information from other individuals’ social media accounts by reproducing their passwords accept doing it.

53. According to reports, it costs 15.43 USD to buy login particulars for a single hacked account in the cybercriminal marketplace.

54. Over 50% of those who try replicating people’s passwords to assist others have accepted doing so and even reproducing their partners’ passwords.

55. Reports show that over 40% of account breaches were done using stolen passcodes.

56. One in every four people who attempted reproducing other persons’ passwords accepted making that same attempt on their children’s passwords.

57. At cybercriminal marketplaces, stolen login information related to the government costs around $3,217.

58. On the internet, 70% less complex online attacks compromise people’s passwords and particulars.  

59. The report shows that about 15.6% of persons that tried guessing people’s passwords also accepted looking into those people’s documents to get beneficial information.

60. People are comfortable using the same passwords on multiple accounts.

61. About 7 to 10 users apply multi-factor authentication on their passworded accounts.  

62. Respondents on a poll acknowledge their desire to secure their mail to a maximum.

63. 44% of people are more concerned with safeguarding their social sign-in passwords.

64. An average phone user utilizes approximately 4 mins to reset their passwords when forgotten.

65. Around 27% of people apply random password generators when creating new passwords. 

66. ⅓ of the internet terminated their login sessions once or twice due to forgotten password procedures. 

67. The number of people who preferred a security measure without the need for passwords was half the number of people surveyed. 

68. 37% learned how to use secure passwords through personal research. 

69. 69% of respondents in a poll agreed that financial accounts should have high-strength passwords. 

70. Multi-factor authentication is reported to have made the online processes of 38% of internet users more challenging. 

71. 70% of interviewed people are confident in the security of their online banking logins.

72. 79% of users on the internet daily apply different password formats on websites they visit.

73. 60% of people think they have safer passwords than others. 

74. 41% of online users say they manage passwords for 10 to 25 websites. 

75. According to 89% of users, their WiFi network is password-protected. 

76. 83 More than 50% of customers say they log into their financial services accounts by typing their passwords.

77. Nearly 40% of Americans feel lazy about inputting or changing passwords. 

78. 30% of people said that changing the passwords for their online banking accounts takes the most time. 

79. People with high password fatigue levels report poor mental health consequences in 78% of cases. 

80. A quarter of customers said they put off one to two purchases because they lost their passwords. 

81. 36% of people use 2FA to secure their online accounts.

82. Most people say they wish to make their online accounts’ security more secure. 

83. More than 70% of Americans store their passwords in the cloud. 

84. 38% of users said inputting a password is how they usually access the metaverse. 

85. People say they use “curse” words within their passwords 42% of the time. 

86. Over 50% of users use a different password for each social media account. 

87. 61% of people need to use their passwords for work accounts.

88. 25% of internet users store their passwords in their browsers.

89. Almost 70% said they would divulge their password to a spouse or romantic partner. 

90. The use of 2FA, according to more than half of people, disturbs their workflow. 

91. One in four people says their employers have taught them the most about protecting passwords. 

92. 34% of online users change their passwords regularly.

93. When choosing a password, 68% of individuals say that security comes first and memorability comes second. 

94. Only 31% of people stop using the same password after receiving cybersecurity training.

95. 37% of users use browser add-ons to assist them in automatically filling in their passwords.

96. Those over 50 are likelier to use unique passwords for each account.

97. To establish passwords for their social media accounts, 1 in 4 millennials utilize password generators.

Business Password Statistics

Over 65% of organizations provide a password policy for their staff. The following are the business password statistics.

98. Monthly employees log in their credentials 154 times on average every month.

99. Employees reclaim passwords 13 times on average.

100. Two in every ten employees state that their organization gives passwords for all work accounts.

101. Over three-fourths of employees face regular use problems related to passwords.

102. The average employee uses one hundred ninety-one logins.

103. Accessing stored/saved passwords is done using smartphones by 23% of employees.

104. 6 out of 10 respondents in the United States report an organizational change in password security after a cyber-attack.

105. 63% of individuals think that managers should provide passwords.

106. The number of employees in the advertising or media industry that reuse passwords is more significant than in other sectors.

107. Adoption of passwordless authentication in the future is the expectation of 65% of IT leaders.

108. The reuse of passwords is done more often by companies with less than 1000 staff than those with a higher number of employees.

109. According to reports, changing passwords is vital to companies, as advised by IT professionals.

110. Work account has a strong password, which 3 out of 10 employees use.

111. Time spent on resetting passwords reduces productivity per employee and brings about a loss of $480 each year in a company.

112. According to research findings, the increased number of mixed workers makes employees cautious about their passwords. This is what 92% of IT leaders think.

113. 3 out of 4 employees do set passwords on their systems.

114. 48,000 passwords are being used within an organization of 250 employees.

115. 36 minutes per month is the amount of time employees spend typing passwords.

Statistics of Password Management

116. Non-monetized password managers are employed by around 70% of password managers.

117. Handwritten notes or memory are used by 2 out of 3 internet users to manage their passwords.

118. The use of a password manager for multiple accounts is employed by one out of four internet users.

119. Using a password management tool enables easy access to the passwords of three out of ten password managers.

120. Security across multiple accounts is guaranteed by the use of passwords utilized by 35% of password managers.

121. Account takeover influenced how over 3 out of 4 people managed their passwords.

122. 47% of People born between the 1980s and 1990s memorize their passwords.

123. Up to 50% of password managers utilize the software for their private accounts.

124. 28% of people (non-users) believe that password manager is insecure.

125. Nearly 25% of password manager users utilize documents on their PCs.  

126. Over 45 million individuals monitored the passwords against password hackers using password managers.

127. Up to 10% of internet users spend one to twenty dollars on password managers yearly.

128. Over 39% of companies reported that password managers are essential to them.

9 Tips for Improving Password Security

1. Utilize different passwords for all your accounts: Your accounts are at high risk and prone to cyberattack if you use a particular password to secure them.
2. Use 2FA (two-factor authentication): With two-factor authentication, your account will have extra login layers. The 2FA enables users to verify their identities when logging in. 
3. Don’ts hare your password: Cyber safety is against password sharing. You are avoiding password-sharing for 100% safety.
4. Avoid using your details: A hacker goes through your details before cracking your password. If you create passwords with personal information, child’s name, spouse’s name, best song, birthday or wedding date, etc., your account could be hacked easily.
5. Long passwords are hardly cracked: It’s tough for hackers to decrypt passwords that are 16 and more characters long. Therefore, it is highly advisable to create longer passwords.
6. Jotting down passwords is Isn’t advisable: Don’t write down your password on a jotter or book. It can jeopardize your account when it gets into the wrong hand.
7. You should use special characters and numbers: Creating a password that comprises special characters, numbers, and letters increases your account safety. Also, hackers are 100% unable to hack accounts with such passwords. 
8. Keep a close watch on your accounts: Constant budget monitoring helps discover suspicious activity that may compromise your password. 
9. Ensuring the use of a password manager: Password managers help keep track of all individual passwords. It also helps in creating an ideal strong password. Norton Password Manager helps in managing passwords across devices.

Conclusion

Whether we like it or not, passwords are essential in our digital lives. Internet users must develop smart password management techniques and stronger passwords to keep their data safe and secure. With unique ways like calculating your password entropy (using the password entropy calculator), using random passwords for every account, and looking into standard requirements and regulations, you can level up your password hygiene. Furthermore, you should add multi-factor or password-less authentication to your password management for maximum security.

FAQs

References

• Over 1,000 Americans Divulge Their Password Habits [Survey]
• Password Habits 2021
• Consumer Habits, Trends, and Adoption of Authentication Tech
• Risk Protection Tuned to Your Business
• 2022 Password Hygiene & Habits Report
• Password Faux Pas
• These Are the Most Common Passwords—Do Yours Make the List?
• THE PASSWORD EXPOSÉ
• World Password Day Survey 2023
• 2021 NORTON CYBER SAFETY INSIGHTS REPORT GLOBAL RESULTS
• Password Manager Annual Report 2022
• Online Security Survey
• Psychology of Passwords 2022
• Survey: How much time do you waste resetting your passwords?
• 2022 Norton Cyber Safety Insights Report: Special Release – Online Creeping
• Our Passwordless Future: A New Era of Security
• SANS 2021 Password Management and Two-Factor Authentication Methods Survey
• Measuring Password Fatigue: Usability and Cybersecurity Impacts [Study]
• 3rd Annual Global Password Security Report
• Norton Password Manager