The antiquated username-password method of online authentication deserves some of the blame for weak protection. Users forced to come up with one more unique combination of letters, numbers and punctuation, then periodically change it, get frustrated for good reason. The passwords revealed on Thursday included "dontforget" on six accounts. One weary user created, "dontforgetdummy." Seventeen others came up with a reminder and password all rolled into one: "changeme."

Passwords are also a window into the ups and downs of Internet life. Though one account holder declared in his password, "iamhappyalways," and five chose, "iamgreat," there were five with "lifesucks," and a heartfelt, "lifesucksman." Eight chose simply, "sorrow." Seven users told the sign-up process to "gotohell," though one chose, "gotoheaven."

Looking for a way out, a few inevitably looked to the bottle. Boozy passwords included, "beerisgood," "beer4me," "beertime" and simply, "alcohol" -- chosen by four people. Religion is another major theme: "jesus" appears 40 times, while the slightly more protective "jesus1" is the password on 101 accounts.

Eventually, along with the frustrations of setting up an online account comes the other end of it. Not one but two of the accounts revealed on Thursday used the password, "accountclosedpissoff."

The IDG News Service