Steps to keep you safe:

1. Keep your password secret
2. Make your password strong - use uppercase, lowercase, numbers and symbols in your password
3. Change your password often
4. Run virus and spyware scanning software
5. Keep your computer up-to-date with operating system and virus updates

For more information visit: http://www.staysafeonline.info/

To learn more, watch Security Videos from Microsoft:

http://www.microsoft.com/athome/security/videos/default.mspx

Blue Ridge CTC Information Security Policy

Your Blue Ridge Community and Technical College Password

        You will be given a 6-digit password by the I.T. Services Department. You must guard your password as you would any other personal belonging or piece of private information.  Having a secure password ensures your privacy and the safety of your email and files.  As soon as possible after receipt of your account you want to change the 6-digit password you are initially given to an extremely unique code.  This will now become your unique password.  Keep in mind when creating your unique password that it is case sensitive.  This means that whether a character is capitalized or not is of importance.  Having a unique password ensures your privacy and the safety of your account.  Keep in mind that your password is YOUR password.  If you lose it, it cannot be looked up and given to you.   

 

General Password Information 

        Your password is what identifies you to the computer and/or network.  Therefore, that password should be as unique as you are.  Should someone guess or steal your password, he or she can masquerade as you, which means the intruder would then have access to your files and your email.  This intruder would have the power to modify or destroy files and to send email in your name.  In short, an insecure password can easily wreak mayhem in your life.

        The longer a password is, the more secure it is.  However, the longer a password is the more difficult it is to remember.  When creating your password try to find a balance between a longer and more secure password, yet one you can remember readily.

 

Safeguarding Your Password 

        The first and foremost rule of passwords . . . NEVER give your password to ANYONE . . . NO exceptions!  There is no reason for anyone to ever need your password.  

        NEVER write your password down . . . anywhere.  This is especially true of notes taped to your desk, notes in a calendar system, those tacked to a bulletin board or put underneath a desk mat.  These are all easy places to find such information.  COMMIT YOUR PASSWORD TO MEMORY!

 

A Bad Password 

        Before creating a password, consider the following that make for a BAD password.  

• Words in the dictionary.   Words like zwieback and zazis, although unusual, are still in the dictionary and can easily be cracked.
• Your user name
• Your real name or any part of it (i.e., your middle name, maiden name)
• Your spouse’s name
• Anyone’s name (including pets, children, boy/girl friends, etc.)
• Any words that are often used as passwords.  These include:

abbreviations, cartoons, character patterns, machine names, famous names, female names, male names, movies, myths/legends, number patterns, short phrases, places, science fiction, Shakespeare, songs, sports  

• Any of the above with a single character before or after it (giggly1, missU)
• Any of the above capitalized (Marmalade)
• Any of the above in reverse order (edalamram)
• Any of the “sample” passwords you see in illustrations.
• A password that you are already using for some other purpose such as your PIN at your bank, your social security number, birth date or driver’s license number.
• Words that have numbers substituted for letters, like a zero instead of the letter O or a number 1 for a lowercase L.
• A password that has been used in the past or a password that is similar to one used in the past.

A Good Password

       Here are some guidelines to use when choosing a GOOD password.    

• You MUST choose a password that is at least 6 characters long, but not longer than 16 characters.
• A good password will be a combination of upper- and lower- case characters, numbers, punctuation marks, and symbols. (spaces cannot be used in passwords).
• The “vanity plate” rule:  take a phrase and try to squeeze it into eight characters, as if you wanted to put it on a vanity license plate. For example, k&ybr=candy bar
• Some people like to pick several small words, separated by punctuation marks of some kind.
• Put punctuation marks in the middle of a word, e.g., “rece%ptioni$t”.
• Think of an uncommon phrase or a line from a poem or nursery rhyme, and take the first, second or last letter of each word.  For example, “You can’t always get what you want” would be “ycagwyw”.  Throw in a capital letter and a punctuation mark or a number or two and you end up with “yCag5wy*w.”  “Three Blind Mice, See How They Run” could be turned into “3bm,C*htr”
• Deliberately misspelling one or more words can make your password harder to crack.
• Use several of the techniques above.

When Should I Change My Password?

• You’ve had the same password for more than 6 months.
• You have told your password to someone else.
• You have written your password down anywhere.
• You suspect that someone saw your password as you typed it in.
• You suspect that your password’s confidentiality has been compromised.

Security and Your Email

        When sending email, keep in mind it is sent via an unprotected source and without encryption.  Do not divulge personal, confidential, or financial information via email.  This could result in an embarrassing situation or in your information’s confidentiality being compromised.  

        Never open an email from an unknown source.  This is the trap that has caught many victims of recent email and attachment viruses.  If you don’t know the source of the email, don’t trust its integrity.  Delete the email without opening it.