Standards: Password Standards - = uncontrolled copy if printed

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Standards: Password Standards

Distribution

Employee

Employee Finance

Employee Human Resources

Employee iSupport

Employee Star=20 Port

Employee Technical

Ownership

The Information Security Director <e-mail>=20 is responsible for ensuring that this document is necessary and that it = reflects=20 actual practice.

Picking a new password requires more thought these = days as=20 more powerful programs to break-in are being developed all the = time. Your=20 Single sign-on password needs to be a strong password because it = protects much=20 of your information. Following are guidelines and best practices = for=20 selecting and protecting your password. LCC=92s password standards = are that=20 passwords should be a minimum of 8 characters with at least 1 alphabetic = character and 1 numeric character. The password should be changed = often=20 and should never be given to friends, family or co-workers.

Choosing a Good Password

Strong passwords have the following characteristics: =

Contain both upper and lower case characters (e.g., a-z, A-Z)=20
Have digits and punctuation characters as well as letters e.g., = 0-9,=20 !@#$%^&*()_+|~-=3D\`{}[]:";'<>?,./)
Note:Not all = LCC=20 systems accept all these characters. If you find that your new = password=20 does not work, you may need to remove the punctuation, or replace it = with=20 something else.=20
Are at least eight alphanumeric characters long.=20
Are not words in any language, slang, dialect, jargon, etc.=20
Are not based on personal information, names of family, etc.=20
Passwords should never be written down or stored on-line. Try to = create=20 passwords that can be easily remembered. One way to do this is create = a=20 password based on a song title, affirmation, or other phrase. For = example, the=20 phrase might be: "This May Be One Way To Remember" and the password = could be:=20 "TmB1w2R!" or "Tmb1W>r~" or some other variation.

Avoiding a Bad Password

Poor, weak passwords have the following = characteristics:

The password contains less than eight characters=20
The password is a word found in a dictionary (English or foreign)=20
The password is a common usage word such as:

Names of family, pets, friends, co-workers, fantasy characters, = etc.=20
Computer terms and names, commands, sites, companies, hardware, = software.=20
The words "Lansing=94, =93Community=94, =93College", "redwings", = "Michigan=94,=20 =93State" or any derivation.=20
Birthdays and other personal information such as addresses and = phone=20 numbers.=20
Word or number patterns like aaabbb, qwerty, zyxwvuts, 123321, = etc.=20
Any of the above spelled backwards.=20
Any of the above preceded or followed by a digit (e.g., secret1, = 1secret)=20

Do not use the same password for=20 Lansing = Community=20 College accounts as for other=20 non-Lansing = Community=20 College access (e.g., personal ISP account, = option=20 trading, benefits, etc.). Where possible, don't use the same password = for=20 various Lansing=20 Community College access = needs. For=20 example, select one password for the Departmental systems and a separate = password for Oracle Star Port Single Sign-On systems. Do not share = Lansing = Community=20 College passwords with anyone, including=20 administrative assistants or secretaries. All passwords are to be = treated as=20 sensitive, confidential = Lansing=20 Community College = information. =20 LCC=92s use of Single Sign-On technology requires greater protection by = the user=20 of their password, as that single password will allow access to many=20 systems.

Here is a List of "Don'ts":

Don't reveal a password over the phone to ANYONE=20
Don't reveal a password in an email message=20
Don't reveal a password to the boss=20
Don't talk about a password in front of others=20
Don't hint at the format of a password (e.g., "my family name")=20
Don't reveal a password on questionnaires or security forms=20
Don't share a password with family members=20
Don't reveal a password to co-workers while on vacation

If someone demands a password, have them call the = ISCD Help=20 desk at (517) 483-5221.

Passwords should only be entered on known password = entry=20 screens. Become familiar with the screen that you enter a password = into=20 and verify that you are not using a fake login screen. Verify that = your=20 TUID single sign-on password is only entered within a web page that = comes from=20 =91https://bonnie.lcc.edu:4443/pls/orasso/orasso.lccp_login.home=92. = ;

It is best practice to not use the "Remember = Password" feature=20 of applications, especially for shared or public computers (e.g., = Eudora,=20 Outlook, and Netscape Messenger).

Again, do not write passwords down and store them = anywhere in=20 your office. Do not store passwords in a file on ANY computer system = (including=20 Palm Pilots or similar devices) without encryption or separate password=20 protection.

Change passwords at least once every six months = (except=20 system-level passwords which must be changed quarterly). The recommended = change=20 interval is every four months.

If an account or password is suspected to have been=20 compromised, report the incident to abuse@lcc.edu and change all = passwords.

Effective: 11/18/03

Revision: 1

Oracle=AE Tutor Copyright =A9 = 1997, 2003, Oracle Corporation. All rights=20 reserved.

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