People have around 170 passwords on average, study shows
May 21 2024 - 8:11AM
On average, a single internet user has 168 passwords for personal
accounts, reveals the latest survey by NordPass. This marks a
drastic 68% increase from the previous time researchers explored
this topic amidst the global COVID-19 pandemic back in 2020.
Previously, NordPass conducted this survey
twice. In February 2020, it revealed that an average person has
around 80 passwords. The same survey was repeated later in the year
— October 2020. It then showcased that the average number of
passwords has increased by 25% — to 100 passwords.
Why do we have more
passwords?
“Previously we attributed the increase to
COVID-19 and the lockdowns — people were indoors and did everything
online — from shopping to doctor’s consultations,” says Tomas
Smalakys, chief technology officer (CTO) of NordPass.
“However, we can see that this is not the only
reason — the amount of accounts that people hold gets higher every
year. Multiple factors come into play — new services get launched,
new shops are opened.”
Smalakys also notes that people tend to keep the
accounts they no longer use. Instead of continuously reviewing the
accounts and closing the ones that are redundant, people hoard
them, which can become a security issue. Chances are, that if a
platform which an internet user has forgotten about or no longer
uses gets breached, they might not even notice it because they
simply do not use it.
“Abandoned accounts are very attractive to
hackers. The primary reason for it is that their passwords are
usually easy to crack — unrevised they quickly get outdated, are
often too short, and have no additional layers of security set up.
Besides, people tend to reuse passwords, so breaking into one
forgotten account can grant a hacker an access to other accounts,”
Smalakys continues.
For work — an
additional 87 passwords
This year, in addition to the number of
passwords people use for personal accounts, researchers also found
that at work, internet users are juggling 87 passwords on
average.
Due to the fact that researchers investigated
the number of passwords people use for business-related accounts
for the first time, NordPass cannot conclude if the number of
passwords people use at work is in fact growing. However, experts
believe that it is likely, given that more companies are now
offering remote or hybrid work settings, which require logins to
many different systems.
Tips to handle all those passwords
easier
Naturally, the task of keeping your passwords
secure becomes even more complicated when the number of them grows,
says Smalakys. To develop healthier credential management habits,
Smalakys recommends starting with the following steps:
1. Audit your
accounts. Try to remember as many of your accounts as
possible, and delete the ones you no longer use. While people find
it hard to remember all the accounts they have, going through the
apps on your phone and email inbox can surely help remember
some.
2. Give passkeys a try. It is
an alternative online authentication technology, paving its way to
replace passwords for good. Many online services already allow
logins with passkeys.
3. Use a password manager. This
technology software offers an end-to-end encrypted environment to
create and store passwords, passkeys, private notes, or other
credentials. In addition, password managers offer an autofill
feature, which simplifies the login process on various
websites.
Methodology: The new
quantitative research by NordPass was conducted on March 4-15, 2024
and surveyed 1,509 NordPass users.
ABOUT NORDPASS
NordPass is a password manager for both business
and consumer clients. It’s powered by the latest technology for the
utmost security. Developed with affordability, simplicity, and ease
of use in mind, NordPass allows users to access passwords securely
on desktop, mobile, and browsers. All passwords are encrypted on
the device, so only the user can access them. NordPass was created
by the experts behind NordVPN — the advanced security and privacy
app. For more information: nordpass.com.
Contact:Emilija
Gaivenyteemilija@nordsec.com