Passwords

If you are using an account for the first time, you should change your password from the one pre-assigned to one which is known to you alone.

Your new password should be at least six characters long. It should contain a mixture of upper and lower case letters, and preferably also digits. It should not consist of any of the following:

a word that could be found in a dictionary
a recognizable proper name
a telephone number, address, birth date, etc.

One method used to break into accounts is to systematically try all of the words in a dictionary or list of names as possible passwords for known usernames. (Some servers, but not all, will block multiple unsuccessful login attempts. Yahoo! mail server started doing so in 1999; Microsoft said there was no problem, but they'd do something about it (TCP 1999 April).)

It's a good idea to change your password periodically.

Remember to keep your password private.
You are responsible for anything done using your account.

R. Funnell

Last modified: Mon, 2002 Mar 18 10:05:56