25 Terrible Passwords Biz Owners Should Avoid

With more businesses being hit by cyberattacks, small business owners will want to take precautions. One simple thing you can do is to avoid using the 25 most common (and most terrible) passwords that are floating around the Internet.

Password-management firm SplashData has released its annual list of the 25 most popular online passwords. These passwords make it very easy for other people to log in to your personal accounts, which puts your personal information at risk, according to the company.

So without further ado, here are the 25 worst passwords by rank, according to SplashData:

1. 123456
2. password
3. 12345678
4. qwerty
5. abc123
6. 123456789
7. 111111
8. 1234567
9. iloveyou
10. adobe123
11. 123123
12. admin
13. 1234567890
14. letmein
15. photoshop
16. 1234
17. monkey
18. shadow
19. sunshine
20. 12345
21. password1
22. princess
23. azerty
24. trustno1
25. 00000

Strong Password Tips

Choosing a good, secure password may be as valuable as purchasing expensive software to prevent hackers and cyberattacks. To create a unique password, make sure that your passwords:

• Are more than eight characters;
• Contain numbers, uppercase and lowercase letters, and special characters like !, @, and ?;
• Are changed frequently; and
• Are different for every account.

Another tip is to create "passphrases" -- short words with characters or spaces separating them. It's best to use words that aren't associated with each other to keep cyber criminals at bay, according to SplashData. For example, "star_computer_door" or "phone@glass!purple."

Remember: You want to create a password that you can easily recall, but is unique enough to ward off hackers. So use the 25 terrible passwords list as inspiration for what not to do when setting up your company's accounts.

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Related Resources:

• Make Sure You Aren't Using One Of The 'Worst Passwords Of 2013' (Business Insider)
• Cyberattacks Now Targeting Small Business (FindLaw's Free Enterprise)
• Asking for Passwords? You May Be Asking for Trouble (FindLaw's Free Enterprise)
• Cyber Attacks: Small Business Guide (FindLaw)