Password Security

Below are some best practices for keeping your passwords safe and secure.

• Never share your passwords with anyone.
  • You should never give your password to anyone, even someone you trust. This includes writing down your passwords, making them visible to people who may have access to your office or desk. If you need to give someone access to your email, you can do this using the Delegates feature in Microsoft Outlook or Entourage. If you are working on a file stored on your G: drive and other people need access, you can move the file to your H: drive.
  • It is against our Acceptable Usage Policy to share your passwords.
    
• Use secure passwords.
  • When making a password, don't use simple words. You should include capital letters and numbers in your passwords. You should make your passwords at least 8 characters long. You can even use special characters in your passwords, such as ? or # or !, to make them more secure. Your password should never be your name, your child's name, your pet's name, your birth date, or anything else that would be easy for someone to guess.
    
• Change your passwords.
  • You should change your passwords on a regular basis. The policy for your Providence College UserID is every 90 days and does not allow you to re-use your recent passwords.
• Do not send your password to anyone via email.
  • There are many scams that exist that try to get various passwords from you. These are called phishing scams. You should never send your password to anyone via email. No legitimate organization will ever ask you for your password, including Providence College IT.