We Now Know the Most Hacked Minnesota Passwords

Keeping your online identity and data safe is an ongoing task, but if you're using one of these passwords here in Minnesota, you could be asking for trouble.

It's just a fact of life in the Land of 10,000 Lakes in 2025 that if you use any internet-connected devices or accounts, you’ve had to create a password. From email to online banking, most of us use several passwords every day. And because passwords are so common, it can be easy to not take care to create a password that is safe from hackers. And, yes, hackers are definitely out there, trying to crack your code.

Online security firm Norton says that over 24 billion passwords were exposed by hackers in 2022 alone. According to Digital Shadows, over 80 percent of confirmed online breaches are 'related to stolen, weak or reused passwords.

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A new survey just revealed some of the easiest passwords to hack, and a few familiar names and phrases many of us here in the Bold North use made the list. From names to numbers, phrases, and number combinations and values, here are the passwords you should avoid using, according to mymxdata.com.

MOST-USED NAMES IN HACKED PASSWORDS

• Michael
• Daniel
• Ashley
• Jessica
• Charlie
• Jordan
• Michelle
• Thomas
• Andrew
• Anthony
• Jennifer
• Joshua
• Andrea
• Maggie
• George
• Hannah
• William
• Samantha
• William
• Robert
• Martin
• Harley
• Brandon

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Of course, most passwords also ask you to use a numerical sequence, as well, right? However, 6,621,933 passwords contain the not-so-complicated number combination of ‘123456’. Check out more commonly used phrases that are also the easiest to hack, courtesy of mymixdata.com:

MOST-USED NUMERICAL VALUES/PHRASES IN HACKED PASSWORDS

• 123456789
• 111111
• password
• qwerty
• acb123
• 12345678
• password1
• 1234567
• 123123

According to this BringMeTheNews story, several familiar, uniquely Minnesotan words also popped up on the most-hacked list. Fortunately, though, names like 'Twin Cities,' 'Minneapolis,' and 'Rochester' didn't make the cut. But fellow words like 'Minnesota,' 'Minnesota1,' 'Vikings,' 'Prince1999,' 'St.Paul,' and even 'Duluth' DID make the most-hacked list.

So if your log-ins include any of those common Minnesota words or phrases without any extra numbers, signs, or other unique personalizations, you may want to...gulp... change those passwords. Because being 'Minnesota nice' won't work against those cyber criminals out to hack into your accounts, right?

Meanwhile, if you want to keep your North Star State pride going on your phone, keep scrolling for 31 beautiful, free phone wallpapers that are perfect for Minnesota lovers everywhere!

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