New research from the IET reveals some worrying insights into the passwords we use for our internet-enabled devices, and some top tips about what we can do to make ourselves more secure.

Today is World Password Day, which takes place every year on the first Thursday in May to promote better password habits.

Passwords have been in the news already this past week with the UK government having enforced new regulations – the Product Security and Telecommunications Infrastructure (PSTI) Act – that require manufacturers of internet-connected devices to implement minimum security standards against cyber threats.

These new laws include manufacturers banning the use of weak or easily guessable default passwords such as ‘admin’ or ‘12345’. If the password is common, the user must be given the opportunity to change it on start-up.

According to new research by the IET, easy-to-access passwords are crackable in less than one second.

This includes using predictable passwords such as a significant date...