Choosing a Strong Password
The following are some common guidelines for making a password or pass phrase more secure:
- Mandate a minimum password length.
- Generate passwords randomly.
- Include letters (capital and lower-case), numbers, and special characters in passwords.
- Avoid passwords based on dictionary words, letter/number or repetitive sequences, user names, proper names, ID numbers, or dates.
- Avoid using the same password for more than one account.
When password quality is set to strong, it can be difficult to enter a password that the system will accept. For example, any part of a character string that resembles a dictionary word will be rejected.
Passwords or pass phrases can be up to 80 characters long, and may be composed of any combination of upper and lower case letters, numbers, spaces, and the following special characters:
= | { | } | [ | ] | : | ; | " | ' | < | > | , | . | ? | / |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
! | @ | # | $ | % | ^ | & | * | ( | ) | ~ | ` | _ | - | + |