Not because they know you, but because they know our habits. If your code looks neat on a keypad or mirrors a date, it’s time to move.
The queue at the cashpoint outside a corner shop in Leyton moved one slow shuffle at a time. A man cupped his hand over the keypad, glanced back, typed, and walked off with a sigh that sounded like routine. Two places behind him, a teenager kept his phone low, lens tilted. He wasn’t filming the pavement. He was filming hands. A few streets later, a woman found her purse still in her bag, her phone still in her coat, and yet money missing from her account. No smashed window, no stolen wallet, just three lucky guesses on a common code. The machine did exactly what it was built to do.
The PINs criminals try first
Ask a fraud investigator what comes first and you’ll hear the same shortlist. 1234. 1111. 0000. 1212. 7777. Simple runs like 1230 or 3456. Straight-line swipes such as 2580. People pick patterns that feel tidy or memorable, and that’s the trap. I’ve watched detectives rattle through guesses that mirror birthdays, years, and mirror pairs. **Criminals read our habits like a map.** If your PIN echoes a neat little rhythm, you’ve given them a head start. Not because you’re careless, but because you’re human. We love symmetry. Thieves love symmetry even more.
One long-running analysis of millions of exposed PINs found 1234 sitting at the top by a wide margin, with around one in ten people picking it. 1111 and 0000 followed close behind. Years like 1980–2003 popped up far more than chance. Another eyebrow-raiser: 2580, the straight drop down a keypad, was surprisingly popular. We’ve all had that moment when the mind goes blank in front of a beeping machine, so we reach for the obvious. A London bus driver told me his colleague lost two wages’ worth after a thief guessed his code in three tries — a football year and a lucky number. Three taps, card blocked, money gone.
Here’s the cold maths. Four digits give 10,000 possibilities, yet most banks allow only three incorrect attempts before a block. That should be a fortress. It isn’t, because a handful of patterns soak up a big share of real-world PINs. Attackers don’t guess at random; they start with the top slice that wins far more often than it should. Add shoulder-surfing — or a discreet camera — and the odds tilt further. Your code doesn’t have to be perfect; it needs to be unpredictable to a stranger with 20 seconds and a short list. That tiny shift breaks their rhythm and buys you safety.
How to choose a PIN that doesn’t betray you
Start with this method. Pick two unrelated two-digit numbers that mean nothing obvious to anyone else. Shuffle them into a new order, then add a private twist only you know — say, bump the second digit in each pair up by one, with 9 wrapping to 0. Commit the result to muscle memory by typing it ten times on a locked phone screen. **A good PIN is boring, random, and yours alone.** If your bank offers six digits, use them. That single step slashes the hit-rate of guesswork and shoulder-surfing alike.
Here are the traps. Birthdays, anniversaries, postcodes, door numbers, and obvious repeats. Don’t mirror your phone lock. Don’t reuse the same four digits across cards. Avoid keypad art you can draw with your eyes closed. *It’s not about paranoia; it’s about friction for the bad guys.* If you need a nudge, choose a number based on a private memory that isn’t written anywhere public, then apply your tiny rule to it. Let’s be honest: nobody does that every day. So change it once, test it, and move on with your life.
Small habits stick best when they’re simple and kind to your future self. Change the PIN in daylight, somewhere calm, then pay once with the new code to lock it in. Say the digits in your head with a rhythm that isn’t the keypad pattern. If someone ever asks for your PIN, walk away. **Small changes slash big risks.**
“Most PIN theft is opportunistic. Take away the obvious guesses, and you take away their fastest win,” a UK bank fraud specialist told me. “You’re not trying to outsmart the world, just the first three tries.”
- Don’t use: 1234, 1111, 0000, years, straight lines, repeats.
- Do use: six digits if offered, mixed pairs, a private nudge rule.
- If you freeze: practise on a locked screen before using it in public.
- When in doubt: change it today; it takes under a minute.
The bigger picture: your PIN is one lock among many
Your card and code are part of a wider defence you can tune. Turn on instant spend alerts in your banking app, so a rogue tap pings your phone in seconds. Set sensible daily limits for cash and card payments to cap any hit. Freeze the card in the app when it’s not in use — handy on holiday, powerful at home. Keep 3-D Secure checks active for online purchases, and let your bank know your travel dates to avoid panic overrides. If a shop’s terminal looks odd, use contactless or move along. You don’t need to live like a spy. You just need layers that make your money a harder target than the card behind you in the queue. Share this with someone who still uses their birth year. They won’t thank you now. They will later.
| Point clé | Détail | Intérêt pour le lecteur |
|---|---|---|
| Predictable PINs get hit first | Patterns like 1234, 1111, 0000, 1212 and 2580 dominate real-world choices | Quick self-check: if yours looks tidy, it’s time to change |
| Make randomness usable | Build a code from two mixed pairs and a private “+1” or wrap rule | Easy to remember, hard to guess in three tries |
| Layer your defences | Spend alerts, card freeze, limits, and six-digit PINs where available | Stops small leaks early and shrinks damage if something slips |
FAQ :
- What are the most common weak PINs?Sequences like 1234, repeats like 1111, 0000, straight lines such as 2580, and years or dates show up far too often.
- Is a six‑digit PIN safer than four?Yes. It widens the space from 10,000 to 1,000,000 combinations and breaks simple guess lists.
- Should I match my phone unlock code to my card PIN?No. If someone learns one, they shouldn’t gain the other. Keep them different.
- How often should I change my PIN?Change it now if it’s predictable or shared. Then leave it unless you think it’s been seen or leaked.
- What if I think someone watched me type my PIN?Change it immediately in your bank app or at a cashpoint, freeze the card, and scan recent transactions for anything odd.
