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Stop Using the Same Password on Multiple Sites! No. Really

PCMag: “When you reuse passwords, a hacker can access multiple services, which might explain why many of our survey respondents have been victims of cybercrimes. If there’s anything we repeat constantly at PCMag, it’s the need for everyone to take cybersecurity seriously. And while that is arguably on the upswing, a large swath of the populace is ignoring best practices—especially when it comes to passwords. The numbers above from our recent survey of 1,041 adults age 18 or older in the US say it all. A full 70% of the respondents admitted they use the same password for more than one thing—sometimes (25%), most of the time (24%), or all of the time (21%). If you don’t know why that’s bad, read on: When someone gets your password for just one service, they have your password for everything. Since most online accounts assign your email address as a username, it doesn’t take Mr. Robot to crack that code. How would a cyber-crook get your passwords, you wonder? Thirty-six percent of our respondents said they physically write down passwords, and 24% keep them in notes stored electronically. Both of these methods make stealing passwords too easy—witnessed out of the corner of some criminal’s eye, for the love of Snowden…”

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