Passwords are an everyday fact of life.
Everyone has difficulty when creating a good password. Then, just about the time you begin to remember it, it's time to change. It is important to have easy to remember but non-guessable passwords in the Longwood computer environment.
What is easy to remember? Your name and address and phone number are easy to remember. However, you should not use personal information for a password because others know and/or find out about your information.
Per the Longwood Password Management Policy this standard requires that you use the following criteria when creating your password:
-Minimum length = 8
-Maximum length on Windows 9x
clients
= 14
-Maximum length on Windows 2000/XP clients =
127
-Maximum length on MacIntosh OS X clients = 128
-Must meet at least 3 out of the 4 requirements for quality:
1) at least (1) lower case
letter
2) at least (1) upper case
letter
3) at least (1) number
4) at least (1) special
character (#,*, =, etc.)
-Passwords must not:
a) be all or part of your
account id
b) be all or part of your
account name
c) be blank
d) contain dictionary words
e) contain more than (2)
repetitive characters (Mmmmmmm1, Ab7777777, etc.)
f) contain
substituted numbers and symbols for letters (3 for E, $ for S, 0 for O, etc.)
-Password must be changed, at a minimum, every 120 days. After the expiration date you will be forced to change your password before being allowed to log on. (On some systems you will receive a notification at log on time that your password is about to expire starting 10 days prior and up to the expiration date.)
-Passwords should not be repeated.
-Do
not use the same password for Longwood accounts as for other non-Longwood
access (e.g., personal ISP account, personal email ,
banking, etc.).
-Do
not use the "Remember Password" feature of applications (e.g., Eudora, OutLook, Netscape
Messenger, Internet Explorer).
Creating Good Strong Passwords
The following information will help you create and remember it your
password without many headaches.
Mixed numbers, letters (upper and lower case) and special characters (#,*, =, etc.) make the best passwords. Mnemonics and numbers in a word can be your best friend. A mnemonic is a formula or rhyme to help you remember. Examples of mnemonics are:
My four children
are wonderful when they're sleeping m4Cawwts
My
anniversary is April 4 remember that date Maia4rtd
Did Ali Baba really
have forty thieves dAbrh40t
My four kids are
wonderful... just like computers
m4kawjLc
Use a new mnemonic or letter word with an important embedded date. For instance, the next time you change your password there might be a holiday, birthday or special event that you need to remember.
Your brother's
B-day is the 12th
Ybbi12th
Buy Fred's present
12th when banking
bfP12wb
Buy John's present
12th after Windows
bJp12aw
Buy Heide's present
12th before reading e-mail
bhp12Bre
NOTE: Do not use any of these examples as actual passwords!
Developing your unique personal pattern is not difficult. Remember
that it is important to change your password regularly. There is an old saying:
a password is like a toothbrush, get the best quality, change it often and
never ever let anyone else use it.
Approved by the Chief Information Officer, May 01, 2003.
Revised by the Chief Information Officer, February 22, 2006.