About 6.5 million LinkedIn passwords were breached yesterday. While the company was quick to issue the announcement and urge users to change their passwords, the incident still created quite a bit of fallout once the most common leaked password choices were revealed.
In 2011, SplashData noted that the most popular online passwords across the web were benign combinations of letters and numbers. “Password,” ironically (or perhaps unironically), was the most commonly used password, while “123456” and “12345678” rounded out the top three choices. In this day of increased identity theft, it’s stunning how many people use such insecure passwords.
Fast forward to yesterday, and you’ll find a dismal shift in password choices. According to BuzzFeed, some of the most popular compromised LinkedIn passwords included “hatemyjob,” “hopeless” and “fireme.” These password choices may be only slightly more secure than the jobs of those who selected them.
It’s depressing to see how many people think so poorly of their jobs. We know LinkedIn can be a great social media resource if you’re looking to switch careers, companies or maybe move up the social ladder, but we honestly had no idea people felt this negative about their current situations.
If you’re feeling “hopeless” about your job or job prospects, here are some resources that could give you the much-needed push to get out there and turn your situation around. Happy (job) prospecting! – Oh, and don’t forget to change your password!