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Tips for Choosing (and protecting) a Password

Your password on the Oakton network is your main protection against unauthorized access. Remember that by choosing a good password and not sharing it you not only are protecting your own files but the network as a whole.

A password must be a minimum of 5 alphanumeric characters. The maximum can be quite lengthy but, depending on which systems you use, 14 characters is probably the safest limit. Also, while not all systems are case sensitive, if you do create a password of mixed case, you should always type it in that same way.

Beyond the length of the password there are a number of important considerations in choosing one. While you want a password that will be easy to remember, you DO NOT want one that will be easy for others to guess. From a practical standpoint, remember that you are also going to have to type your password. The easier it is to type, the faster it is to type and the less likely it is that someone watching nearby will be able to tell what keys you're pressing.

Some examples of bad passwords (the types hackers will try first):

• Your social security number
  
• Your license plate number
  
• Your phone number
  
• Variations on your name or login ID
  
• The name of your department or workgroup
  
• The name of a close family member

Some others that are commonly discouraged:

• Any single word found in the dictionary, spelled correctly
• A series of characters in the order they appear on a keyboard such as qwerty or asdfg.
• A password of all digits or all letters
• Computer jargon
  
  

Following are some ideas for creating a difficult to crack password:

• Create an acronym from a memorable but less common phrase. For instance: igwtaopc (In God We Trust, All Others Pay Cash)
• Take two or more short, unrelated words and put them together, possibly inserting a number at some point, like payc8up.
• Create a nonsense word. By alternating one consonant/one or two vowels, you can create something pronounceable (and easier to remember) such as mookeyla

Password Security

The cleverest password in the world is not going to help you if you give it away.

• You should never, ever write it down. And when you do, don't leave it lying around or taped to your computer.
• If you need to share files with someone, don't give them your login and password. Everyone at Oakton now has his own network account and IT can set up shared directories for employees.

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