What is password psychology?

People use weak passwords, and they are aware of it.

People know their accounts were breached, yet they do not change passwords.

Most people want to keep control over their credentials. They reuse their passwords on multiple accounts so they do not forget them.

At first sight, such human behavior regarding passwords does not make sense. People are aware of their risky behavior and still choose to do it.

That is why we are here today to talk about password psychology.

What is it, and what can you do about it?

What is password psychology?

In short, password psychology studies what makes passwords (or cryptographic keys) easy to memorize or guess. It also focuses on human password behavior: how people create, store, and manage their credentials.

Password psychology seeks to understand and explain why people fall into such traps as password reuse.

By educating yourself about password psychology, you can learn to understand the roots of your password behavior and choose to change it to more secure data management strategies.

This will strengthen your data security and increase the resistance to cyber threats.

What are the main issues in password psychology?

The role of the password is to provide secure access, to unlock entrance gates for the people who have a right to pass them.

90% of people are concerned that their passwords can be easily compromised.

Most people can easily differentiate between a weak and a strong password.

And yet, people still fail to create strong passwords that could defend their accounts from a breach.

Password psychology reveals critical issues in data management and discusses their reasons.

Password management might be linked to personality.

Various people behave differently with their passwords. For example, a security-oriented person who seeks control may select longer, more complex credentials.

Contrarily, an easygoing or careless person might choose easy-to-remember but vulnerable to cyber threats credentials.

This lets us understand that sometimes our personality might influence our behavior. Luckily, everyone can change password habits. You just have to want that.

People prefer convenience over security.

Although people are concerned about the increasing number and sophistication of cyber threats, they still prioritize convenience.

Convenience refers to the ease of password creation, memorization, and use.

For instance, when a user creates a password, he searches for straightforward methods to achieve that. Unsurprisingly, such passwords as 123456789 or 111111 become among the first choices. These are easy enough to type.

Also, people do not want to apply complex strategies to store their credentials. Therefore, they either rely on their memory to remember all of them or write them down: on Excel sheets, notebooks, or sticky notes. Yet, all these practices make data particularly vulnerable to cyber threats.

Strong passwords are difficult to memorize.

The cognitive ability to remember complex sequences limits people from using strong passwords.

To solve password memorization difficulties, users fall into some security traps.

For instance, they reuse passwords on a few accounts or select an old password to protect a new account.

They also include some elements that allow them to remember passwords better. Usually, they create a password based on personal information: name, surname, date of birth, telephone number, children’s or pets’ names.

How can you improve your password security?

Password psychology reveals weak areas in password management. And yet, you can always choose to improve your data security by changing your habits.

So, how can you improve your password security?

• Secure passwords as a habit.

Just as risky password management becomes a habit over time, so can you get into the habit of creating secure passwords.

Use a password generator to create your credentials. Such a tool (usually integrated into password managers) suggests you a complex password that will protect your accounts from cyber threats related to weak credentials.

• Choose convenience. But not over security.

Password management can, in fact, be convenient and secure. In fact, secure data management might be more convenient than following old and dangerous password habits.

Start using a password manager to combine convenience and security. Such a tool stores your passwords encrypted in a safe vault, inaccessible by external threats. It is also the most convenient method to store your passwords. Simply because you do not even need to remember them.

You only need to upload and save all your credentials inside the vault. The next time you visit any website, the tool automatically fills in your data.

• You do not need to memorize your passwords.

There is a better and more secure approach to remembering all your passwords. When you use a password manager, you can create dozens of complex passwords without memorizing them.

You only need to memorize one password ( a Master Password) that unlocks your vault. All the other passwords are automatically saved and filled in. This way, you can store unique passwords of random sequence (f.e., H3JM3Zqo$hRowl7$A) without the need to remember them.

Password psychology reveals weak areas in the way humans manage credentials. Yet, you can always choose to change your habits to secure ones.

Start using a reliable password manager like PassCamp and strengthen your cyber security without hassle.