Driving the news: A new study found that major car companies are protecting their critical systems with passwords like "123456" and "P@ssw0rd."
For context: NordPass dug through 2.5 terabytes of leaked data from the Dark Web and found car manufacturers, suppliers, and dealerships using laughably weak passwords. And many companies compound the problem by reusing passwords with minor variations, like "F3930ebbce" and "F3930ebbce@," across different systems, reports Hackread.
Why it matters: Human error drives about 70% of data breaches, often because employees use their own names or email addresses as passwords. Most of these companies aren't even using basic multi-factor authentication, which is like leaving your front door unlocked.
What we're watching: The car industry isn't uniquely terrible at this. The study found similar password disasters across healthcare, finance, and retail. But with vehicles becoming more connected and autonomous, the stakes keep getting higher. Companies need to get serious about cybersecurity training, password managers, and moving toward "passkeys" that eliminate traditional passwords altogether.
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