Using clever social engineering exploits, the hackers posed as Honan and succeeded in extracting key bits of personal information from Amazon and Apple customer support. With the critical data in hand, the hackers then locked Honan out of his Google account, commandeered his Twitter stream, seized control of his Apple ID number, and wiped his computing devices clean.

It was momentarily life-wrecking, at least.

If a hacker wanted to ruin your lifewhether by identity theft or by a simple Honan-esque data wipehow difficult would that objective be to achieve? The answer is that it's likely a lot easier than you think.

Are you an easy target?

According to a recent Harris Interactive poll commissioned by Dashlane, a company that manages passwords and personal data, most online Americans are concerned that their personal data might be used online without their knowledge. Approximately 88 percent of the 2208 adults surveyed cited being at least "somewhat concerned," and 29 percent claimed to be "extremely concerned." In addition, three out of five respondents were worried that they were vulnerable to being hacked.