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2026-01-20 blog.readTime
Why "123456" Is Still Queen: The Psychology of Weak Passwords
The Laziness Factor
Human brains are wired to conserve energy ("Cognitive Load"). Creating, memorizing, and recalling a complex password requires effort that most people aren't willing to spend for a service they don't value highly (like a random forum or a newsletter).
The Hall of Shame (2025 Stats)
123456(Used by 4.5 million people in recent breaches)password123456789guestqwerty111111
The "RockYou" Effect
Hackers use "wordlists" containing millions of real passwords leaked from previous breaches (like the famous RockYou.txt). When they attack an account, they try these top 10,000 common passwords first before trying to guess random characters.
If your password is in the top 1,000: You are effectively using NO password. It will be guessed in less than 1 second.
Keyboard Patterns
Passwords like "qwerty", "asdfgh", or "qazwsx" feel random to us, but they are just spatial patterns on a keyboard. Attackers know these "walks" and program their tools to test them specifically.
The Solution: Outsource Your Memory
Don't Be a Hero: You cannot beat a computer at randomness. Step aside and let a Password Manager do the heavy lifting. It generates
8#vN2!zL, remembers it, and types it for you. You get better security and do less work.