{"id":8435,"date":"2015-03-18T12:25:14","date_gmt":"2015-03-18T17:25:14","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/?p=8435"},"modified":"2021-11-21T14:26:57","modified_gmt":"2021-11-21T20:26:57","slug":"password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/","title":{"rendered":"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You"},"content":{"rendered":"

Over the years, we\u2019ve learned a lot about passwords (and we\u2019ve been urged to make them stronger and more difficult to guess). For the most part, though, people keep their passwords short and sweet \u2013 and fairly easy to crack. Why? What is the psychology behind how people choose specific passwords? We wanted to know. We analyzed two data sets containing the password choices of 10 million people \u2013 CEOs, scientists, students, and all types in between \u2013 to figure out why there are certain things we consider easy to remember and difficult to guess. Using this data, we discovered who uses what types of password, the gender and generational differences that influence password selection, the most commonly used password keyboard patterns, and much more.<\/p>\n

\"commonkeyboardpatterns<\/a><\/p>\n

Check out our study \u201cUnmasked: What 10 Million Passwords Reveal About The People Who Use Them<\/a>\u201d to read more and to find out if your password follows any of these predictable patterns.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Over the years, we\u2019ve learned a lot about passwords (and we\u2019ve been urged to make them stronger and more difficult to guess). For the most part, though, people keep their passwords short and sweet \u2013 and fairly easy to crack. Why? What is the psychology behind how people choose specific passwords? We wanted to know.…<\/span><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":70,"featured_media":8432,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[198,13],"class_list":["post-8435","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized","tag-passwords","tag-security"],"yoast_head":"\nPassword Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"noindex, follow\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"WP Engine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wpengine\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2015-03-18T17:25:14+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2021-11-21T20:26:57+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/password-study-graphic.png\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1000\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"381\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/png\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Andrew Hickey\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@andrewrhickey\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@wpengine\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Andrew Hickey\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"1 minute\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/\",\"name\":\"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2015-03-18T17:25:14+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2021-11-21T20:26:57+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/a007ca0a28c00aa34f0a4ab8a925d284\"},\"description\":\"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/\",\"name\":\"WP Engine\",\"description\":\"Managed Hosting for WordPress\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/a007ca0a28c00aa34f0a4ab8a925d284\",\"name\":\"Andrew Hickey\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17fa8c3e667b41e2c69849db34c7a1ff547a3e46ef6d300701d4b15f307b8068?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17fa8c3e667b41e2c69849db34c7a1ff547a3e46ef6d300701d4b15f307b8068?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Andrew Hickey\"},\"sameAs\":[\"www.linkedin.com\/in\/andrewrhickey\",\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/andrewrhickey\"]}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine","description":"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.","robots":{"index":"noindex","follow":"follow"},"og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine","og_description":"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.","og_url":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/","og_site_name":"WP Engine","article_publisher":"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/wpengine","article_published_time":"2015-03-18T17:25:14+00:00","article_modified_time":"2021-11-21T20:26:57+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1000,"height":381,"url":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-content\/uploads\/2015\/03\/password-study-graphic.png","type":"image\/png"}],"author":"Andrew Hickey","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_creator":"@andrewrhickey","twitter_site":"@wpengine","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Andrew Hickey","Est. reading time":"1 minute"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/","url":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/","name":"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You | WP Engine","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#website"},"datePublished":"2015-03-18T17:25:14+00:00","dateModified":"2021-11-21T20:26:57+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/a007ca0a28c00aa34f0a4ab8a925d284"},"description":"We've analyzed two datasets of passwords to determine which words, numbers, and patters are the most commonly used and the psychology around why people choose specific passwords.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/password-patterns-predictability-and-psychology-what-123456-says-about-you\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Password Patterns, Predictability, And Psychology: What \u2018123456\u2019 Says About You"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#website","url":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/","name":"WP Engine","description":"Managed Hosting for WordPress","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/a007ca0a28c00aa34f0a4ab8a925d284","name":"Andrew Hickey","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17fa8c3e667b41e2c69849db34c7a1ff547a3e46ef6d300701d4b15f307b8068?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/17fa8c3e667b41e2c69849db34c7a1ff547a3e46ef6d300701d4b15f307b8068?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Andrew Hickey"},"sameAs":["www.linkedin.com\/in\/andrewrhickey","https:\/\/twitter.com\/andrewrhickey"]}]}},"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8435","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/70"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=8435"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/8435\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/8432"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=8435"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=8435"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/wpengine.com\/case-studies\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=8435"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}