The Ghost in Your Machine: October’s Digital Security Check

Every October, we dust off old costumes, tell ghost stories, and lean into what’s hiding in the shadows. But not all ghosts live in haunted houses. Some of the scariest ones live in your digital life.

 

They show up as old logins, unused apps, or free trials you never canceled. These “ghost accounts” linger in the background long after you’ve forgotten about them, quietly holding bits of your personal information. Maybe it’s an online shopping profile you haven’t touched in years, a fitness tracker that stopped syncing ages ago, or a subscription that expired but never fully disappeared. Like skeletons rattling in the closet, they’re easy to ignore — until something goes wrong.

 

Here’s the problem: the more accounts you leave open, the more doors exist for hackers or data thieves. A survey by Inc. found that the average person has over 100 online accounts — and that number is still climbing [1 Inc. – www.inc.com/ghostaccounts]. Even if you don’t use an account anymore, if the company suffers a breach, your data could be exposed. In fact, researchers at Stanford estimate that 88% of data breaches are caused by human error, often tied to weak or reused credentials [2 Stanford – www.cybersecurity.stanford.edu/breachreport].

 

The good news? Clearing them out is easier than you think. Start by running a password manager audit to see how many accounts you actually have floating around. Password managers not only track your logins but can also alert you to weak or duplicated passwords — tools like Dashlane reported that over 70% of people reuse the same password across multiple sites [3 Dashlane – www.dashlane.com/research/passwordreuse].

 

Another quick step: check if your email has ever been part of a data breach. Since launching, Have I Been Pwned has cataloged over 12 billion breached accounts worldwide [4 Have I Been Pwned – www.haveibeenpwned.com/statistics]. A simple email check can reveal if your data is floating around the dark web.

 

Ghost stories are fun when they stay in books and movies. They’re not so great when they haunt your digital world. This October, give yourself a little peace of mind by running a digital ghost hunt. It’s a seasonal ritual that’s equal parts satisfying and smart. And unlike carving pumpkins, you only have to do it once to keep the lights on and the shadows at bay.