Choosing strong passwords:

While passwords are one of our first lines of defense when using the Internet, they also can be more of a weak defense than a strong defense if we choose a password that is too easy to remember. This is because easily remembered passwords are easy for others to guess or break.

A strong password should:

• be seven characters or more in length,
• not be a name or a word from the dictionary,
• have one or more upper-case letters,
• have one or more lower-case letters,
• have one or more digits, and
• have one or more other printable characters (~!@#$%^&*).

There are tricks you can use to come up with a strong password that is
still easy to remember. For example, think of a favorite line from a
movie or poem then, pick the first letter from each word, capitalize
every other letter. You could also combine two short words together,
capitalize one word but not the other. Be sure to include some digits
and other special characters in your password.

It is all right to write your password down so long as you store it in a safe place where no one else has access to it. Never give your password to anyone else and, never let anyone else use your computer account. IT recommends you change your password at the start of every semester. This helps to insure that no one else can log into your account without your knowledge.

To read more about password security go to
http://www.cert.org/tech_tips/home_networks.html