Almost 16 million use same password for every website

It can be very difficult remembering so many passwords these days but it is vital

The research found 46 per cent of British internet users, 15.6 million, have the same password for most web-based accounts and five per cent, or 1.7 million, use the same password for every single website.

Some 29 per cent use variations of the same password, for example using days of the week or adding numbers to the end of a word. Memorable dates, children's names and mother's maiden names are each used by one in 10. One in five users sign in with their pet's name.

Users are advised to keep passwords secret but 40 per cent admit disclosing them to friends or family while two per cent say their former partner still has access to their accounts.

One in ten users have had an account hacked. Of these, 18 per cent had goods bought in their name, 12 per cent had money taken and five per cent had their identity stolen.

No sensible person would use the same key for their house, car and garage. In the same way, we shouldn't use the one password for everything. If possible people should use multiple passwords with a combination of letters and numbers, which should be difficult to crack.

An online fraudster who manages to find your single password will have the keys to your entire online life. They can then do everything to your accounts that you can. This could lead to money being stolen from bank accounts, fraudulent purchases via online shops or identity theft.