Around 56% of respondents to a password survey said they are confident that their online passwords are secure, while only 3% feel that their passwords are vulnerable.
This is according to a recent research survey conducted by research company Nudge, in which 803 respondents from SA, Ghana, Kenya and Tanzania participated.
Candice Sutherland, business development consultant at SHA Specialist Underwriters, says many people are relatively misinformed regarding the potential dangers that weak online passwords pose.
"In a world heavily reliant on technology for daily operations, especially regarding banking, shopping and confidential communication, it has become more lucrative and easier to steal online than on the streets," she reveals.
She warns consumers with weak passwords expose themselves to an increased risk of hackers getting access to their personal details and information.
Individuals' personal details are freely available on numerous Web sites, especially on social networking profiles, which makes it very easy for criminals to guess passwords and answer security questions if the person does not have a strong password in place, explains Sutherland.
"The biggest and most common mistake consumers make is to use the same password for multiple accounts.
"People who have one password for multiple accounts are extremely vulnerable to being hacked, as the criminals often use password-cracking software that can keep testing different passwords until they find the correct one," she points out.
For example, she explains that 'What is your mother's maiden name' is a popular security question and when someone has their mother listed as a friend on their Facebook and her maiden name is included in her profile, the criminals will be able to use the information in order to hack the user.
According to a research report by Kaspersky Lab and B2B International, 25% ofInternet users had at least one of their online accounts hacked, leading to unauthorised messages being sent out in the user's name, sometimes with a malicious link included, and the loss or theft of personal data.
The research revealed the kind of accounts targeted by hackers include e-mail (11%), social media networks (11%), and online banking or shopping accounts (7%), sites that many consumers use on a daily basis and that keep them in touch with work and their closest friends and family.
Earlier this year, online security firm SplashData announced the 2015 edition of its annual "Worst Passwords list" highlighting the insecure password habits of Internet users.
They revealed the top three commonly used passwords were "123456", "password" and "12345678".
According to SplashData, the list was compiled with information from more than two million leaked passwords over the course of 2015, and came mostly from users in North America and Western Europe.
The research found out of the list of 25 passwords, seven are just a combination of consecutive numbers. Other predictable passwords included "qwerty", "welcome", "letmein" and "login."
With the release of Star Wars: The Force Awakens, SplashData says several people seemed to have taken inspiration from the film to protect their data. The words "starwars" "solo," and "princess," all made appearances on the list.
Sutherland urges consumers to ensure that their passwords and associated security questions contain a combination of numbers, letters and symbols.
When choosing a security question, avoid choosing your mother's maiden name, place of birth, favourite destination or pets name as these are things that criminals can easily find out, she adds.
She says should a certain Web site force the user to choose one of the former security questions, an answer such as 'amst3rdam#' might be enough to remind you of your favorite place.
She notes every additional character, regardless of whether it is a letter, number or symbol makes a password exponentially harder to crack
Sutherland's tips for consumers:
* Do not enable the "remember me" function available on Web sites to remember passwords. If someone else gets access to your computer just think about all the social networks and shopping sites they can enter.
* Do not share passwords with anyone.
* Never use personal information such as your name, birthday, or spouse's name in a password as personal information is often publicly available.
* Create a long password. A password should be at least six characters long, but should ideally consist of 12 characters if the site allows it.
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