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Passwords

September 29, 2005 - 7:27pm

So it's that time again for me to change my password on all the work systems. You know, it's policy to change passwords every 90 days. It's a good idea and definitely the right policy to put into place. But I just hate doing it. I mean, I have to come up with something that I don't mind typing at least 20 times a day. AND something I can remember...though that doesn't seem to be much of a problem once I've actually picked something.

About a year ago, I had to tell my password to one of our IT people. At the time, it was "the77killers" - you know, a good password has letters AND numbers. He took a long pause after I told him. Then it occurred to me that I had better explain that The Killers are a band least he think I had a violent streak.

My worst password nightmare occurred about a year ago. I got to the ATM machine and I simply couldn't remember my PIN. It was the same PIN that I had used for over five years. FIVE YEARS! Suddenly it was just completely gone from my brain. Completely gone. To this day, I still don't have any idea what it was.

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Pick a letter on the bottom row of the keyboard, "V" for example. Work your way up to the number row diagonally, shift one key left or right, then back down to the bottom on the new diagonal. Capitalize the first key and the result is "Vgy78uhb" or "Vfr45tgb". Toss in a symbol at the top for 'Vfr$5tgb". Now all you have to remember for the next 90 days is the starting letter.
Posted by Mark on October 1, 2005 - 9:49pm
Biometrics? How about psychometrics! Whenever you have to change your password, get a 8x10 piece of paper and make a rorschach type inkblot on it. When *you* look at it, you know exactly what it is, so just make that thing that you see part of the password. Keep the inkblot in a folder in your desk (or frame it if you're daring). Unless it's an obvious shape, no-one will guess it...
Posted by AndyS on October 1, 2005 - 1:30pm
As soon as I started reading about your password situation, I flashed back to when you forgot your PIN number! It's funny that you mentioned it too. It still makes me laugh...how does that happen?! Who just forgets a number that you've been using for 5 years?
Posted by Kristen on September 29, 2005 - 7:34pm
My company has the same policy regarding passwords, but the logic that Windows uses to validate the new password is flawed. The restriction is that it's got to be at least 8 characters, with 1 cap, one number and one symbol from the number row - and you can't use any part of your name. And all that would be well and good, except that all I have to do is change the symbol, and the system accepts the change. I'm waiting for the day we start using biometics, so I can stop having to remember all these seemingly random passwords...
Posted by M-D on September 30, 2005 - 3:40am

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