Sales Of Fingerprint Technology Computers Soar As New Survey Reveals Brits' Password Confusion
15 September, 2008
There are fears that lax security practices are helping fuel a boom in online identity theft which is costing the UK an estimated £1.7 billion a year. One in six people (16%) say they have been victims of identity fraud.
The casual way people treat passwords security is further highlighted in that over 30 per cent admitting to telling colleagues at work or other family members their personal passwords.
Almost all of those questioned, 82% said they were fed up with passwords and would like a better way to login to computer systems.
One of the problems is the growing number of websites which require people to register and then log on before they can get entry. These include the likes of iTunes, Facebook and shopping sites. The average number of sites visited by people in a week which require then to register and log on was 17.
Bob Darke, Comet's Commercial Director said: "Fingerprint protected computers are in demand because they are an easy way to protect a computer and they eliminate the possibility of unauthorised access to a laptop or a PC because each individual's fingerprint is unique."
"It is easy to understand that people get fed up with being asked for passwords for so many different sites.
"Even so customers can take a few simple steps which makes it more difficult for the hacker to discover passwords and our in-store colleagues can help advise on computer use.
"Our advice is to avoid hackers stealing passwords consumers should mix up capital and lower case letters. When using a number avoid birthdates or house numbers - use a combination of the car's registration number instead which is easy to recall. Use a favourite place rather than a family name."
Most commonly chosen passwords
1 Partner's name
2 Your own name
3 Birthdate
4 Pet's name
5 Football team
6 "password"
7 Favourite singer/band
8 mother's/father's name
9 House name/street name or house number 10 123456 or abc123
The casual way people treat passwords security is further highlighted in that over 30 per cent admitting to telling colleagues at work or other family members their personal passwords.
Almost all of those questioned, 82% said they were fed up with passwords and would like a better way to login to computer systems.
One of the problems is the growing number of websites which require people to register and then log on before they can get entry. These include the likes of iTunes, Facebook and shopping sites. The average number of sites visited by people in a week which require then to register and log on was 17.
Bob Darke, Comet's Commercial Director said: "Fingerprint protected computers are in demand because they are an easy way to protect a computer and they eliminate the possibility of unauthorised access to a laptop or a PC because each individual's fingerprint is unique."
"It is easy to understand that people get fed up with being asked for passwords for so many different sites.
"Even so customers can take a few simple steps which makes it more difficult for the hacker to discover passwords and our in-store colleagues can help advise on computer use.
"Our advice is to avoid hackers stealing passwords consumers should mix up capital and lower case letters. When using a number avoid birthdates or house numbers - use a combination of the car's registration number instead which is easy to recall. Use a favourite place rather than a family name."
Most commonly chosen passwords
1 Partner's name
2 Your own name
3 Birthdate
4 Pet's name
5 Football team
6 "password"
7 Favourite singer/band
8 mother's/father's name
9 House name/street name or house number 10 123456 or abc123
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