Passwords are critical to your computer’s security, and you should
take precautions to keep yours secret. When picking a password, you
should be sure to choose one that is easy for you to remember but would
be hard for others to guess. You should always be careful, too, when
logging in to your workstation, that no one is peering over your
shoulder to see your keystrokes.
Video by Lenae Boykin from Texas A&M University, Silver Award EDUCAUSE 2009 Computer Security Awareness Video & Poster Contest
Password Complexity Requirements
Currently at Eastern, employees are required to use strong passwords for logging into desktop computers, e-mail accounts, Banner and domain accounts. The password requirements are as follows:
The first character of your password must be alphabetic
Your password must be a mix of upper and lower case letters
Your password must contain at least one numeral
Your password must be at least eight characters long
Your password must contain at least one special character (from the following list): ! % * + - / ? :
Your password may not be longer than 15 characters total
Tips for Creating a Strong Password
Creating a good password can be a difficult task. Passwords should be easy to remember but hard to guess. If you must write down your password, remember to keep it as secure as your credit card number. Here is some advice on how to make and remember a good password:
Do not use common words associated with your family, hobby, personality or place or type of employment. Do not use your name, birthdate or pet’s name. A better practice is to use letters and numbers to represent phrases.
Substituting numbers or special characters for letters when creating acronyms is a good way to make a password easy to remember. Here are some examples for strong passwords (do not use these examples yourself):
“Be kind to nerds” might be Bk1nd2:N3rds “Love to use Banner!” might be Lv2Banr! “Tastes great, less filling” might be Tstgr8-lesfill “I hate passwords” might be Ih8pswdS
Video by Chris Wetzel from Ohio Northern University, EDUCAUSE 2009 Computer Security Awareness Video & Poster Contest Combined Gold Winner
Protect Your Password
At Eastern, passwords must be “strong,” containing a certain number of letters, capitals, numbers and symbols. And, they must be changed on a regular basis, about once a semester. Password security, however, does not end with picking a strong password. In order to ensure full password security, you must also take steps to protect your password.
Do not share your password. You are responsible for all activities conducted on your account.
Do not write your password down. Written passwords are easily stolen.
Change your password on schedule. The longer you are using your password, the more likely it is that someone will be able to figure it out.
Do not store your password in a program. When your e-mail client or Web browser stores your passwords, it is very easy for a hacker or a computer virus to retrieve them without your knowledge.
“Be kind to nerds” might be Bk1nd2:N3rds “Love to use Banner!” might be Lv2Banr! “Tastes great, less filling” might be Tstgr8-lesfill “I hate passwords” might be Ih8pswdS
How to Change Your Password
Passwords will expire only once per semester and must be reset by the user. Expirations will not be scheduled at critical times such as during finals week or at the end of the fiscal year.
To reset your password on your PC, hit Ctrl+Alt+Delete. On the pop-up menu that appears, click Change Password, then follow the instructions, typing in your old password and new password as indicated. You can also change your password by going to the EZ-Reset/P-Synch Web site at www.ezreset.eiu.edu