Cookies

We use essential cookies to make our site work. We'd also like to set analytics cookies that help us make improvements by measuring how you use the site. These will be set only if you accept.

For more detailed information about the cookies we use, see our cookies page.

Essential Cookies

Essential cookies enable core functionality such as security, network management, and accessibility. For example, the selections you make here about which cookies to accept are stored in a cookie.

You may disable these by changing your browser settings, but this may affect how the website functions.

Analytics Cookies

We'd like to set Google Analytics cookies to help us improve our website by collecting and reporting information on how you use it. The cookies collect information in a way that does not directly identify you.

Third Party Cookies

Third party cookies are ones planted by other websites while using this site. This may occur (for example) where a Twitter or Facebook feed is embedded with a page. Selecting to turn these off will hide such content.

Skip to main content

Password Advice from Action Fraud

By Belinda Baker, Parish Clerk Headbourne Worthy Parish Council

Saturday, 13 November 2021

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Headbourne Worthy Parish Council Contributor

VIEW ALL ARTICLES BY THIS AUTHOR

23M People Used 123456 As A Password

Whether it’s your Facebook, Amazon, or Netflix account, the explosion in popularity of online apps and services means more and more of us have to remember an increasingly long list of passwords.

Unfortunately, some of us cope with this challenge by resorting to practices that leave our data, devices and money at risk - by using the same password across multiple accounts, or by creating simple passwords that could easily be guessed by hackers. Bad password practice is more prevalent than you might think - the UK’s National Cyber Security Centre carried out analysis of passwords leaked in data breaches and found that more than 23 million users worldwide used 123456 as a password. You can read more about it here: https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/news/most-hacked-passwords-revealed-as-uk-cyber-survey-exposes-gaps-in-online-security

Here are some top tips from Action Fraud that will make your life easier and your online accounts more secure:

1: Creating memorable passwords
A good way to create strong, memorable passwords is by using 3 random words. But remember, don’t use words that can be guessed (like your pet’s name). You can include numbers and symbols if you need to. For example, “RedPantsTree4!”

2: Saving passwords in your browser
Saving your password in your browser means letting your web browser (such as Chrome, Safari or Edge) remember your password for you.
This can help:

  • make sure you do not lose or forget your passwords
  • protect you against some cyber crime, such as fake websites

It is safer than using weak passwords, or using the same password in more than one place.
Here are some useful links on how you can start saving passwords in your browser: Google Chrome, Microsoft Edge, Firefox, Safari.

3: Email account passwords
If a hacker gets into your email account, they could:

  • reset your other online account passwords
  • access personal information you have saved about yourself or your business

Your email password should be strong and different to all your other passwords. This will make it harder to crack or guess.

Need help changing your email account password? You can use these links to find step by step instructions: Gmail, Yahoo! Mail, Outlook, BT, AOL Mail.

For more of the government’s latest advice on how to stay secure online, visit the Cyber Aware website: https://www.ncsc.gov.uk/cyberaware

Contact Information

Belinda Baker, Parish Clerk

  • 07770 406607

Find Headbourne Worthy Parish Council

Headbourne Worthy, Winchester, Hampshire

DIRECTIONS