Although World Password Day, held annually on the first Thursday in May, has passed, our — and we hope your — fascination with password security continues. Instead of analyzing artificial “test-tube” passwords created for lab studies, we stayed in the real world — examining actual passwords leaked on the dark web. The results were alarming: 59% of these passwords could be cracked in less than an hour — and all it takes is a modern graphics card and a bit of know-how.
Today’s post explains how hackers crack passwords and how to counter it (spoiler alert: use reliable protection and automatically check your passwords for leaks).