How to check if your password has been hacked

Google says the majority of people choose not to change hacked login details despite research showing that billions of website passwords have been compromised.

The company launched a Password Checker earlier this year, warning users if they have a hacked password. Anonymous data fed back to Google produced some alarming results.

650,000 people took part in the initial experiment, scanning 21 million usernames and passwords. Google found that 316,000, or 1.5%, had been flagged as unsafe. Worse still, Google’s research showed that only 26% of people who received a notification that their login details had been compromised went on to change their password.

The Password Checker is now available more widely as an add-on for Chrome browsers and any username and password combinations cross-referenced against Google’s compromised list of 4 billion will be flagged up when used. This is a quick and easy way to discover whether your password is safe.

The advice when using passwords is to make them unique for each site and to change them regularly. Those with following numbers or characters like ‘123456’ or ‘qwerty’, can be hacked almost instantly; as can using derivatives of your identity such as your name, address, pet’s name or phone numbers. This kind of information is often used by hackers for ‘credential stuffing’ attacks where a combination of personal details gained from a data breach are then used to spam a number of different sites in order to try and discover passwords.

Conflict International’s technology experts are highly skilled experts in all manner of cyber security issues. From traditional bug and telecoms sweeps to using the latest technology to test how strong your IT infrastructure is from attack, Conflict International can advise how safe you are and where you can tighten up on any vulnerabilities we find.

To find out more about our services or to discuss a case in more detail, please contact our London Head Office for a no obligation chat on +44 (0)20 7917 2939 or email us at [email protected]