Latest news with #PINcodes
Daily Mail
6 days ago
- General
- Daily Mail
Experts reveal what numbers you should change your PIN code to...and which to NEVER use
Tech experts are warning that some of the most widely recommended PIN codes for protecting your electronics may now be the easiest for hackers to crack — all thanks to their rising popularity. IT pro Davey Winder says once a supposedly 'secure' four-digit code hits the internet, it becomes useless. Case in point: 8068, once hailed as the safest PIN, is now a hacker's dream. 'As soon as 8068 was named online, it became anything but safe. As soon as you could Google what's the safest PIN code and get 8068 returned, it became a very weak number instead,' Winder wrote for Forbes. 'The same applies to the other numbers noted in the study, 6835, 7637, 8093, and 9629.' He warns that even a four-digit PIN, in theory, takes only 10,000 tries to guess — a task easily automated by hackers. Instead of choosing birthdays, anniversaries, or easy-to-remember patterns, Winder recommends going longer: six digits at minimum, or up to 12 for real protection. Davey Winder revealed the password '8068' became 'anything but safe' due to experts repeatedly saying it was a great password 'Passwords and PINs that are easy to type and recall are also easy to guess,' he said. 'That's your biggest mistake.' Some of the worst passwords, according to Winder, include '000000,' '1234567,' 'charlie,' and even 'iloveyou.' Even when someone opts out of using personal information, individuals can still find ways to crack codes. An easy way for this to happen is if the person uses the same four-digit PIN for all electronics, which is more common than one may expect. A study with over 29 million participants showed that one in 10 people use a four-digit PIN code from data breach lists. Through this study, experts were able to put together a complete list of four-digit PINs not to use, which include '1234,' '1111,' '0000,' and '1342.' Experts found that '1234' was the most popular choice, accounting for nearly one in 10 million participants' PIN numbers. The PIN number is frequently attributed to James Goodfellow, an inventor who's considered to be the person behind the creation of the ATM. Winder insisted people remember the importance of passwords, which can be just as easy to crack as PINs. 'Passwords that are easy to type as well as recall. And that, right there, is your biggest mistake,' Winder mentioned in another Forbes article. 'If you do it, other people will do as well, and that's why if your password is on this list you must change it now.' Some of the 33 passwords the expert insisted weren't good include '000000,' '1234567,' 'charlie,' and 'iloveyou.' A quick tip Winder suggested for anyone looking to keep their phones safe is to stop using four-digit pins and use six or 10 instead. PIN codes and passwords to never use PIN codes 0000 1010 1111 1122 1212 1234 1313 1342 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1998 2000 2002 2004 2005 2020 2222 2468 2580 3333 4321 4444 5555 6666 6969 7777 8888 9999 Passwords 000000 111111 11111111 121212 123123 12345 123456 1234567 12345678 123456789 1234567890 555666 aaron431 abc123 abcd1234 ABCDEF admin charlie dragon iloveyou lemonfish liverpool monkey password password1 qwerty qwerty1 qwerty123 secret tangkai user0123 welcome woaini
Phone Arena
25-05-2025
- Phone Arena
If you are using these PIN numbers on your iOS or Android phone, change them immediately
PINs are important. You probably have a four-digit PIN to guard access to your phone, your bank account, and other online portals that you want to keep others away from. The problem, according to a report from the Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC), is that the PINs most used are so popular that someone might be able to break into a phone they found or stole. ABC went to website "Have I Been Pwned" and analyzed 29 million PIN codes. What they found is pretty disturbing. The most popular four-digit PIN is 1234 and is used as a code by one out of every ten of the millions of codes that ABC looked at. The second most popular PIN is 0000 followed closely by 1111. People are lazy and don't want to have to tax their brains to remember a PIN so they will repeat the same number. The problem is, the bad guys might be able to figure this out and break into a device. PINs in the top ten of usage include 1212 (which repeats 12 twice) and 4444. Another popular series of PINs uses the device owner's year of birth which explains why 1986 is a very popular PIN. Someone born that year is 38-39 years old. Also in the top 20 of PINs used is 2004 which would include those who turned or are turning 21 this year. In countries outside the U.S., the Date/Month format is more popular than the Month/Date format used in America. Thus, special days that can be converted into four-digit PINs should also be avoided such as 2512 (December 25th-Christmas). You should also avoid 1225. Some popular four-digit PINs are popular because those who use it think that they are clever. For example, 1342 is the most popular code; it is simply a play on 1234. You might wonder why 2580 is in the top 40. If you can't figure out why that combination is so popular, look at the dial pad on your phone. See it now? It's the four numbers straight down starting with the number two. The math reveals the problem. Let's say someone steals a phone and has ten chances to guess before getting locked out or having the data automatically wiped. If the guesses are limited to the 50 most popular PINs, the chance of guessing the correct PIN can be as high as 15% according to Gemini. I don't know about you, but that is a concerning figure if you ask me. To reduce those odds, stay away from using the 50 most popular four-digit PINs: 1234-Popularity 9.0% 1111-Popularity 1.6% 0000-Popularity 1.1% 1342-Popularity 0.6% 1212-Popularity 0.4% 2222-Popularity 0.3% 4444-Popularity 0.3% 1122-Popularity 0.3% 1986-Popularity 0.3% 2020-Popularity 0.3% 7777-Popularity 0.3% 5555-Popularity 0.3% 1989-Popularity 0.3% 9999-Popularity 0.2% 6969-Popularity 0.2% 2004-Popularity 0.2% 1010-Popularity 0.2% 4321-Popularity 0.2% 6666-Popularity 0.2% 1984-Popularity 0.2% 1987-Popularity 0.2% 1985-Popularity 0.2% 8888-Popularity 0.2% 2000-Popularity 0.2% 1980-Popularity 0.2% 1988-Popularity 0.2% 1982-Popularity 0.2% 2580-Popularity 0.2% 1313-Popularity 0.2% 1990-Popularity 0.2% 1991 Popularity-0.2% 1983-Popularity 0.2% 1978-Popularity 0.2% 1979-Popularity 0.2% 1995-Popularity 0.2% 1994-Popularity 0.2% 1977-Popularity 0.2% 1981-Popularity 0.2% 3333-Popularity 0.2% 1992-Popularity 0.2% 1975-Popularity 0.2% 2005-Popularity 0.2% 1993-Popularity 0.2% 1976-Popularity 0.2% 1996-Popularity 0.2% 2002-Popularity 0.2% 1973-Popularity 0.2% 2468-Popularity 0.2% 1998-Popularity 0.1% 1974-Popularity 0.1%
