Why are we all still using '123456' as a password?

Twitter hack reveals 123456 is a commonly used password.
(Image credit: iStock)

People today may be more tech-savvy than ever before, but they're still not that good at coming up with passwords. The recent Twitter hack that uncovered the login info of more than 32 million users revealed that more than 120,000 of those users are still using the incredibly obvious password "123456."

Out of all the millions of passwords hacked, CNN reports, "123456" was far and away the most commonly used. Right up there with it were passwords like "123456789," "qwerty," and "password." As Mashable aptly put it, using these passwords is akin to "locking your front door, but then leaving the keys on your porch. And breaking the lock. And punching a big hole in the door."

Aside from revealing people's terrible choice in passwords, the hack also stole email addresses and user names — all of which are now allegedly being sold on the online black market. Twitter maintains that the hack was not the result of a breach in its system, but rather the fault of people using the same password for several sites.

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The only thing worse than using "123456" for a password, it turns out, is using it as a password multiple times.

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